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Conflict and Education in the Middle East |
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A report by Strategic Foresight Group has mentioned the academic cost of conflict in the Middle East. After the 2003 US war in Iraq, there has been a deliberate targeting of educational establishments by militants. In 2007, 353 academics were assassinated. Almost 800,000 children are currently out of school, and over 3,000 academics have fled the country. Over 30% of children and 40% of university students stay at home due to fear, and paucity of schools near them.
In the Lebanon 2006 war, Lebanese children were some of the worst affected, where 33% of all civilian deaths were children and 390,000 children were displaced. 40,000 children had their education disrupted during the war, with over 300 schools having been damaged. More than 10% of Children in Gaza have witnessed the killing of a teacher in school and more than 1,300 Palestinians schools have been disrupted by curfews, sieges and closures. On several occasions IDF forces and militants have taken over schools in the Occupied Palestine Territories and checkpoints have hindered education significantly. More than 3,000 school children were detained by Israeli Defence Forces since 2000.
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