Students and teachers detained at Israeli checkpoint

Israeli forces have blocked students and teachers from entering the Susya Mixed Basic School, located south of Hebron in the West Bank, as reported by Middle East Eye via Wafa news agency on December 29th.

Reportedly, a military checkpoint was set up by Israeli forces, where the students and their teachers were detained for a period of time and subjected to harassment by the soldiers.

Education in the West Bank and Occupied East Jerusalem has increasingly been pushed to the brink by Israeli economic sanctions that have left schools unable to pay their staff, along with closures of schools by Israeli authorities.

Hebron and its surrounding areas have also been subjected to a military siege, where marches staged by Israeli settlers have led to road closures and Palestinian neighbourhoods being placed on lockdown.

Settlers are protected by Israeli authorities, who have further tightened restrictions on Palestinian inhabitants under the guise of Israeli safety and security.

The Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron was previously closed by Israeli forces on October 8th, as settlers marked the Jewish festival of Sukkot, which began on October 7th.

Palestinian residents of Hebron have long experienced Israeli violence, with a notable example being in 1994 when Israeli settler, Baruch Goldstein, killed 29 Muslim worshippers at the Ibrahimi Mosque.

Goldstein had been inspired by the teachings of Meir Kahane, a Zionist extremist Rabbi who has received praise from the Likud-led coalition government.

Hebron and its surrounding areas have also been the site of targeted mass arrests since October 2023, with Israeli forces frequently conducting raids on Palestinian homes across the West Bank.

It was reported on November 26th that since October 2023, over 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli violence in the West Bank, with 217 of the dead being minors.

On November 13th, two Palestinian children were shot dead by Israeli forces in Beit Amr, north of Hebron; their deaths came after a 13-year-old boy died from injuries sustained by inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli soldiers.

Israeli authorities have been accused of failing to protect Palestinians from Israeli settler violence, with concerns being raised that settlers responsible for the deaths of Palestinians frequently go unpunished.

Middle East Eye via Wafa, Maghrebi.org