GAZA CITY, Palestine/ISTANBUL

The Islamic University of Gaza has begun the first steps toward a gradual return to in-person learning, inside buildings damaged by airstrikes and partly reduced to rubble, after two years of forced interruption from their studies due to the Israeli genocide that destroyed the enclave’s educational infrastructure.

Within partially restored, cracked walls, hundreds of students have returned to classrooms in a scene that reflects the determination of Gazans to reclaim life and education despite the scars of war.

On Saturday, the Islamic University resumed its first day of face-to-face instruction after the war suspended the educational process for two years, during which limited attempts at online learning were possible amid displacement, power outages and the destruction of university facilities.

According to the Gaza Media Office, the Israeli genocide destroyed 165 schools, universities and educational institutions, while 392 sustained partial damage, crippling Gaza’s education sector.

Parts of the university’s buildings also shelter hundreds of displaced families whose homes were destroyed during the genocide and who have no alternative refuge, prompting the school’s administration to appeal to relevant authorities to find urgent solutions and provide them with alternative housing.

Media office estimates indicate that the enclave needs 300,000 tents and prefabricated housing units to meet residents’ shelter needs after the extensive infrastructural destruction.

Historic day

“Today is a historic day. We are returning to education despite the tragedy and cruelty left behind by the genocide,” Islamic University President Asaad Yousef Asaad told Anadolu as he described the gradual return to in-person instruction.

“Palestinians, as everyone knows, love life and education,” he added.

Asaad said large numbers of students from the faculties of medicine and health sciences returned to their classrooms Saturday.

He noted that a phased plan for full return is underway in coordination with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education.

He added that the university, like all universities in the enclave, suffered extensive destruction, including the demolition of several main buildings, forcing it to rely on online education during the war despite displacement, electricity cuts and communication breakdowns.

He explained that 4,000 students graduated during the war through remote learning, and the university is receiving new students for the first time in person since October 2023.

Strong passion for learning

In the medical faculty’s classrooms, Malak al-Moqayad expressed her feelings.

“I enrolled in the Faculty of Medicine, and today we return to in-person classes for the first time after the war,” she told Anadolu. “The university was heavily damaged, but it managed to restore the building despite the overcrowding.”

“I am happy to be here. We all feel proud, joyful, and honored to continue learning. Medicine is a practical field, and we strive to attend classes physically,” she said. “Despite everything that happened, the university regained its strength and welcomed students again. There is a strong passion for education.”

Sama Radi also expressed happiness at being able to join the university after the genocide and return to in-person learning.

“This is the first day of face-to-face lectures,” she said. “Despite the destruction and bombings, we sit in classrooms, and I am proud of my country and my university, which managed to rise from the Israeli genocide and return stronger than before.”

Since October 2023, the Israeli army has killed nearly 70,000 victims in Gaza, mostly women and children, and injured more than 170,900 in the more than two-year war that has left much of the enclave in ruins.