Background

• In Gaza, 17 years of blockade combined with recurrent conflict have damaged and destroyed an already fragile education infrastructure: increasing pressure on education facilities, disrupting education provision, and impacting the psychosocial wellbeing of children and teachers. The recent hostilities in Gaza has tragically witnessed a high trend of attacks on school facilities, exacerbating the already dire humanitarian situation.

• Since October 7th, the Education Cluster “EC” has been monitoring and reporting on damages to schools through initial reports from Cluster partners in the field, UNOCHA, and UNRWA. In addition, the EC has activated the Education Cluster Assessment Team (ECAT) that has been deployed to verify damages on each occasion the situation allowed.

• The Education Cluster published the first update “Verification of damages to schools based on proximity to damaged sites” on the 10th of January.

Objective

Due to the increased access limitation to the field especially in Gaza and North Gaza governorates, and the intense Israeli bombardment from air, land, and sea across much of the Gaza Strip, in addition to recurrent telecommunication shutdowns, the Cluster administered a Satellite-derived Damage Assessment to:

▪ To update the results of the previous report on school damages based on proximity to damaged sites including new trends and severity of damages.

▪ To better understand the situation of school buildings and the severity of damage, especially in areas with limited field access.

▪ To help in updating the Flash Appeal as part of the Cluster Response Plan and allocate resources where they are most needed, ensuring a swift and effective recovery process.

▪ Communicate the impact of the ongoing hostilities on school facilities to the public, including humanitarian actors. This information helps raise awareness about the severity of the situation and can facilitate evidence-based engagement in recovery efforts.

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