Embedded Files
To some, 'scholasticide' may be a new term. It was first explored by Oxford University Professor Karma Nabulsi, who conceptualized it in the context of the 2009 Israeli assault on Gaza. She also referenced it to “the pattern of Israeli colonial attacks on Palestinian scholars, students, and educational institutions.” She said that she understands the importance of education to the Palestinian tradition and revolution and noted that Israeli policymakers “cannot abide it and have to destroy it.”
During the latest Israeli assault on Gaza, it’s clear that scholasticide is intensifying at unprecedented and never before seen rates. On top of the 40,000 murdered Palestinians, Israel has committed to targeting and destroying the most powerful weapon: education.
Scholasticide is comprised of any of the following acts that entail systemic destruction, in whole or in part, of the educational life of a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group:
1
Killings and assassinations of university and school teachers, students, staff, and administrators.
2
Causing bodily or mental harm to university and school teachers, students, staff, and administrators.
3
Arresting, detaining, and incarcerating university and school teachers, students, staff, and administrators.
4
Closing educational institutions and/or disrupting their daily operations.
5
Bombarding and demolishing educational institution.
6
Restricting faculty, student, and staff access to educational institutions.
7
Systematic harassment, bullying, and intimidation of university and school teachers, students, staff, and administrators.
8
Invading educational institutions.
9
Preventing scholarly exchange in all its forms.
10
Destroying and/or looting of teaching and research resources including libraries, archives, andd laboratories, as well as facilities supporting the educational process, including playgrounds, sports fields, performance venues, cafeterias, and residence halls.
11
Obstructing the creation of new educational structures.
12
Hindering access to the internet, disrupting the provision of electricity, and preventing the free entry of educational supplies, including books and laboratory equipment.
13
Blocking the hiring of academic staff and denying them entry to their institutions through visa denial and other restrictions.
14
Impeding the import of essential materials for rebuilding damaged schools and universities.
15
Besieging schools and universities and using them as barracks, logistics bases, operational headquarters, weapons and ammunition caches, detention, and interrogation centers.
16
Disrupting international and domestic funding of educational institutions.
17
Revoking residency rights for Palestinian students or academics that may pursue educational opportunities abroad.
18
Denying education to political prisoners, including child detainees.
All of these acts are being carried out with devastating impacts in Gaza, Palestine. They are integral to a broader genocidal strategy aimed at systematically dismantling the social fabric of the occupied territory, ultimately rendering it uninhabitable and paving the way for comprehensive ethnic cleansing.
These practices have long been inflicted on educational institutions and communities in the Occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, and some are also experienced by Palestinian citizens within the Israeli state. The persistent nature of these actions highlights a calculated effort to erase Palestinian identity and obstruct the continuity of education as a means of resistance.
This definition draws on and uses the work of Scholars Against the War on Palestine, whose extensive research has documented and brought to light these egregious violations of human rights and academic freedom.
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