"Hamas": The occupation destroyed more than 90% of education in Gaza and killed 1,050 teachers

Hamas called for the protection of Palestinian education in a statement on World Teachers' Day, asserting that the occupation destroyed more than 90% of school and university infrastructure in Gaza and killed over 1,050 teachers. The movement accused the occupation of "educational and cultural genocide" and targeting teachers in the West Bank and Jerusalem with arrest and persecution, urging the international community to criminalize these crimes and support the educational sector.

The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) issued a statement on Monday, October 5, 2026, on the occasion of World Teachers' Day, calling for the protection of Palestinian education from "occupation crimes." The movement affirmed in its statement that the Israeli occupation destroyed more than 90% of the infrastructure of schools and universities in the Gaza Strip and killed over 1,050 male and female teachers. Hamas accused the occupation of committing what it described as "educational and cultural genocide" in Palestine, which it said has been ongoing for three years, alongside targeting teachers and educational institutions in the West Bank and occupied Jerusalem with arrest, persecution, restrictions, and killing. The movement considered these violations an assault on the Palestinian people's right to education and a disregard for international laws and conventions, calling on the international community and relevant institutions to criminalize these crimes, work to stop them, support the educational sector, and ensure the continuity of the educational process. Hamas praised the role of male and female teachers in the journey of the Palestinian people, appreciating their fulfillment of their mission despite the repercussions of the war and the lack of resources. It also affirmed that attempts to "Israelize" education and its curricula, and targeting educational institutions in Jerusalem, will not erase their Arab and Islamic identity. The movement called on Arab and Islamic countries and free people of the world to act to protect and support the educational system in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and Jerusalem, and to create humanitarian, material, and safe environmental conditions and necessary alternatives for the continuation of education, and to thwart the occupation's goals. Hamas prayed for the souls of the martyred teachers, wishing recovery for the wounded and freedom for the prisoners.