Al Agha: Gaza Students Suffer Malnutrition

by **Admin** Sat Mar 15, 2008 4:41 am

Yousef Joudeh - Minister of Education and Higher Education of the Palestinian government in Gaza, Dr. Mohammad Al Agha told journalists earlier this week that due to the siege imposed on Gaza by Israel since June, 2007, most school students in the Gaza Strip suffer malnutrition, which has affected their school performance and capabilities greatly.

Al Agha also stated that his ministry has been facing many obstacles this year due to shortages in school books, stationary and equipment. However, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) had facilitated and partially resolved the problem of providing Gaza with printing paper to print textbooks to be distributed to students in Gaza schools, he added.

However, this is not nearly enough, according to human rights organizations, who are issuing appeal after appeal to the Arab and international communities to do whatever they can to alleviate the suffering of the Gaza Strip, particularly that of children.

Part one of Article 26 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights reads, “Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.”

Therefore the Israeli practices against schools and school children, whether in the form of direct shootings, preventing students from reaching their schools, or imposing closures that do not allow adequate supplies, contravene not only humanitarian law, but international law and the United Nations.