Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike carried out on a school sheltering displaced people, in Gaza City, on Aug.16, 2025. (Credit: Mahmoud Issa/Reuters)
The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said Sunday on X that Israel has partially or completely destroyed 97 percent of Gaza's schools, based on satellite imagery provided by the United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) as of July 8.
The destruction of these schools comes after most were converted into shelters for people fleeing Israeli bombings.
The educational system in the Palestinian enclave is thus on the verge of collapse, with nearly all school buildings having been damaged since the start of the war. According to UNOSAT, more than nine out of ten schools, including those run by UNRWA, will need to be completely rebuilt or undergo major rehabilitation to become operational again.
According to the same assessment, 432 school buildings, or 76 percent of the total in Gaza, have been directly hit since Oct. 7, 2023, the date of the unprecedented Hamas attack on Israeli soil, which killed 1,219 people, mostly civilians. The Israeli military estimates that 49 hostages remain held in Gaza, 27 of whom are believed to be dead. The ongoing war has killed more than 62,686 people in the Gaza Strip, according to the local health ministry.
The assessment also specifies that 97 percent of educational institutions (+1.6 percent compared to the previous period) have suffered varying degrees of damage, ranging from "direct impact" to buildings "damaged" or "likely damaged." Nearly 91.8 percent of Gaza's schools (518 out of 564) will require either complete reconstruction or major rehabilitation to become functional again.
According to the same data, 432 school buildings (76.6 percent of the total in Gaza) have been directly hit since Oct. 7, 2023, an increase of 26 buildings (+4.6 percent) compared to the previous period.
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