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Al Jazeera
2 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
An open letter from the presidents of Gaza universities
We, the presidents of Gaza's three non-profit universities— Al-Aqsa University, Al-Azhar University-Gaza, and the Islamic University of Gaza — together accounting for the vast majority of Gaza's students and faculty members, issue this unified statement to the international academic community at a time of unprecedented devastation of higher education in Gaza. Israel's ongoing genocidal war has brought about scholasticide—a systematic and deliberate attempt to eliminate our universities, their infrastructure, faculty, and students. This destruction is not collateral; it is part of a targeted effort to eradicate the foundations of higher education in Gaza—foundations that have long stood as pillars of resilience, hope, and intellectual freedom under conditions of occupation and siege. While academic institutions across Palestine have faced attacks for decades, what we are witnessing today is an escalation: a shift from repeated acts of destruction to an attempt at total annihilation. Yet, we remain resolute. For more than a year, we have mobilised and taken steps to resist this assault and ensure that our universities endure. Despite the physical obliteration of campuses, laboratories, libraries, and other facilities, and the assassination of our students and colleagues, our universities continue to exist. We are more than buildings — we are academic communities, comprised of students, faculty, and staff, still alive and determined to carry forward our mission. As articulated in the Unified Emergency Statement from Palestinian Academics and Administrators issued on May 29, 2024, 'Israeli occupation forces have demolished our buildings, but our universities live on.' For over a year, our faculty, staff and students have persisted in our core mission — teaching — under unimaginably harsh conditions. Constant bombardment, starvation, restrictions on internet access, unstable electricity, and the ongoing horrors of genocide have not broken our will. We are still here, still teaching, and still committed to the future of education in Gaza. We urgently call on our colleagues around the world to work for: A sustainable and lasting ceasefire, without which no education system can thrive, and an end to all complicity with this genocide. Immediate international mobilisation to support and protect Gaza's higher education institutions as vital to the survival and long-term future of the Palestinian people. Recognition of scholasticide as a systematic war on education, and the necessity of coordinated and strategic international support in partnership with our universities for the resilience and rebuilding of our academic infrastructure and communities. We appeal to the international academic community — our colleagues, institutions, and friends — to: Support our efforts to continue teaching and conducting research, under siege and amidst loss. Commit to the long-term rebuilding of Gaza's universities in partnership with us, respecting our institutional autonomy and academic agency. Work in partnership with us. Engage directly with and support the very institutions that continue to embody academic life and collective intellectual resistance in Gaza. Last year, we formally established the Emergency Committee of the Universities in Gaza, representing our three institutions and affiliated colleges — together enrolling between 80 and 85 percent of Gaza universities' students. The committee exists to resist the erasure of our universities and offer a unified voice for Gaza's academic community. It has since established subject-focused subcommittees to serve as trusted and coordinated channels for support. We call upon academic communities around the world to coordinate themselves in response to this call. The time for symbolic solidarity has passed. We now ask for practical, structured, and enduring partnership. Work alongside us to ensure that Gaza's universities live on and remain a vital part of our collective future. The views expressed in this article are the authors' own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
CBC
22-05-2025
- General
- CBC
How students and professors work in Gaza
Most universities in Gaza, like Al-Aqsa University, have been destroyed during the war. Professor Ahmed Junina and his student Aseel Alwan, whose home is still standing in northern Gaza, explain how students and teachers are working in a war zone. Junina also previously worked as a visiting professor at Laval University in Montreal.
CBC
22-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Education under fire: How Gazan students and professors study and teach in a war zone
Before beginning her lessons for the day, Aseel Alwan heads to the kitchen to make coffee, placing a kettle on an open flame to boil water that she pours into a mug with instant coffee. Then, she makes her way to her bedroom, where she begins the daily hunt for an internet connection — a tall order at her family home in Gaza City. The 21 year old is working on her bachelor of English literature at Al-Aqsa University. She is among thousands of university students in Gaza attempting to continue their studies despite the ongoing war. Alwan and her family are among the lucky few whose homes are still standing. They have refused to leave Gaza City for the south, because they say their safety is at risk no matter where they are in the strip. Ahmed Junina, Alwan's English literature professor, says enrolment numbers at the university have declined "significantly." Almost a year and a half after fighting began, most of the universities in Gaza have been destroyed, including Al-Aqsa, halting studies for some 88,000 students throughout the enclave, according to Palestinian education officials. "I think this is not unexpected, we are talking about students who have been forced to flee their homes or lost family members," Junina said. He has made an effort to keep in touch with his students throughout the war and estimates that almost 90 per cent of them were displaced while taking online courses. Even Alwan, whose home is still standing, was sometimes forced to leave due to nearby attacks. And although she has so far always been able to return, this has all taken a toll. What she and her family once thought was temporary, has become a daily struggle as they try to go about their lives while universities, schools and even hospitals are being bombed. "It's honestly heartbreaking, seeing the university you have been going to for years crushed to the ground is not something easy at all," Alwan told CBC News freelance videographer Mohamed El Saife. "It's like years and years of knowledge and hope … a future is being wiped out." Finding a connection That's why Junina, who was previously a visiting professor at Montreal's Laval University, has made it his mission to continue to support the 600 students he's currently teaching across three courses. The work, he says, is "driven more by personal and collective responsibility than by institutional structure or requirements." And it's often done without proper compensation — Junina says he currently makes about 30 per cent of what he used to, and payment can be irregular. "Many of us continue to teach and support students not because we are compensated properly, but because we believe that education must continue and we must support students even during wartime." Alwan is grateful for the chance to continue her studies, but is often overwhelmed by fear and uncertainty and says what she and others have endured is something "no student should go through." She says access to the internet is the biggest challenge she's faced in continuing her education. "The internet was either too weak or completely cut off," she said, noting that during one displacement, she had to walk 45 minutes to find a good, stable signal. "And it wasn't even an actual place. You had to stand in the middle of the street and try to do your thing." Though she's now back at home, Alwan normally studies at a cafe near their building because it has better internet. But last Friday, after a week of heavy bombing, she decided it would be safer to work from home. Before she can start her courses for the day, she needs to log on to the internet. To do this, she goes to the window in her room where the signal is stronger. There, she uses her phone to scan a QR code that loads an app and gives her a number to enter. This system allows her to have a more stable connection. Once connected, she hits play on a voice note from Junina. It's one of several messages that will make up the day's lesson. Lessons by voice message The professor says the war has massively changed his life. "Now, instead of coming to your university, your classroom, meeting your students in person, my daily routine has changed." Junina now teaches mostly from home, sitting at a desk with his laptop and his textbook. He keeps his Whatsapp and Telegram accounts open on his phone where he records lectures. Sometimes, his recordings capture the sounds of drones buzzing in the distance, a constant reminder of the war. When he's done recording, he compresses the file so it's easier to download and sends the voice note to his students. He then pulls up another lesson on his laptop. Because electricity isn't always reliable, when it comes time to charge his devices, he makes his way to an internet cafe, walking past endless mounds of rubble. In the ruins of what were once residential buildings, businesses and universities, plants grow through cinder blocks. When Junina arrives at the cafe, a large, open space with rows of desks occupied by people wearing headphones, he takes a seat and pulls up his laptop to continue his work. Sometimes, his students meet him here because they need a stable internet connection to complete exams and quizzes sent via timed links. Junina feels the war has forced universities to expand online learning and adapt to the current situation, but he thinks it's something that will ultimately benefit them. "I imagine a future where online platforms continue for some time to supplement face-to-face education," he said. "Because even if the war ends or stops tomorrow, I don't think students will be ready to resume in-person education immediately." In the meantime, there are plenty of students like Alwan, who are dedicated to their studies. She remains undeterred by her circumstances and says she plans to complete her studies and apply for a scholarship to study abroad. "My only motivation is that I think education is a strong tool and weapon against this occupation."
