Al-Israa University Jan.17, 2025. (Credit: Ehab Abo Khair.)
"Education is not collateral damage — it is the target," says Ehab Abo Khair, spokesperson for al-Israa University in Gaza. Al-Israa University, once a cornerstone of higher education in Gaza, was the last standing university in the region in early 2025. Abo Khair explains, the university was occupied by the Israeli army for 70 days before being completely leveled on Jan. 17, 2025, two days before a cease-fire started in the enclave. The targeting and destruction of Gaza’s educational infrastructure since Oct. 7, 2023, have left the region's academic community shattered. The scale of devastation is staggering: as of March 2025, according to the most recent U.N. report more than 80 percent of Gaza’s schools have been damaged or completely destroyed, and all 11 universities in the region have been reduced to rubble, leaving an entire...
"Education is not collateral damage — it is the target," says Ehab Abo Khair, spokesperson for al-Israa University in Gaza. Al-Israa University, once a cornerstone of higher education in Gaza, was the last standing university in the region in early 2025. Abo Khair explains, the university was occupied by the Israeli army for 70 days before being completely leveled on Jan. 17, 2025, two days before a cease-fire started in the enclave. The targeting and destruction of Gaza’s educational infrastructure since Oct. 7, 2023, have left the region's academic community shattered. The scale of devastation is staggering: as of March 2025, according to the most recent U.N. report more than 80 percent of Gaza’s schools have been damaged or completely destroyed, and all 11 universities in the region have been reduced to rubble, leaving an...