Israeli siege bars 80,000 Palestinian students from school in Hebron

The General Union of Palestinian Teachers announced on Sunday that nearly 80,000 Palestinian students were unable to attend school last week as Israel's siege of Hebron in the occupied West Bank forced 537 families from their homes and disrupted classes at 220 institutions.

School Closures and Teacher Detentions

The closures affected public, private and UN-run schools across the central Hebron education district, the union said in a statement carried by the Palestinian news agency WAFA. For displaced students, the disruption extends beyond missed lessons — many have lost access to their books and study spaces while teachers struggle to reach their classrooms. Israeli forces detained 10 teachers from Jinba Basic Mixed School for several hours Sunday on Khallat al-Dabaa Road in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron, seizing their vehicle and forcing students to wait indefinitely, according to the statement.

Appeal for International Action

The union condemned the road closures and detentions as "an assault on the right to education and on people's lives and dignity." It appealed to education unions worldwide to convert solidarity into pressure on governments to reopen school routes and protect students and teachers, urging Education International to lead diplomatic lobbying and send a delegation to document conditions in Hebron and Masafer Yatta.

Military Operation Enters Tenth Day

The Israeli operation entered its tenth consecutive day Sunday, having displaced or otherwise affected more than 3,300 Palestinians in the al-Jalda and Ain Deir Bahha areas, according to the union. Israeli troops have sealed off Hebron and surrounding villages, converting seized homes into military posts. Fifteen structures have been demolished and infrastructure damage has paralyzed daily life since the siege began.