Religion, Nationalism, and Terror

Gaza: Israel Blocks 670 Students from Studies Abroad (Human Rights Watch, 20-11-2007)

Egypt, Palestinian Authority and Hamas Share Blame

(New York, November 20, 2007) – The Israeli government is arbitrarily blocking some 670 students in Gaza from pursuing higher education abroad, Human Rights Watch said today. Israel is denying exit permits that the young men and women need to leave Gaza for university programs in countries such as Egypt, Jordan, Germany, Britain, and the United States. The students are among roughly 6,400 Gazans with foreign citizenship, permanent residency, work permits, student visas or university admissions abroad, who have been trapped in Gaza since June, when Hamas took control of the territory by force.

Israel has near total control of Gaza’s borders – land, air, and sea. Since June, it has mostly allowed only extreme medical emergencies, some journalists, and employees of international organizations to leave.

“Israel seems determined to punish all Gazans, including students, for the behavior of Hamas,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, director of Human Rights Watch’s Middle East division. “Israel should not make young people seeking education pay the price for its conflict with a political or military group.”

Universities in Gaza do not offer degrees in a variety of subjects, including undergraduate degrees in languages other than Arabic, English and French, and master’s degrees in law, journalism and information technology. Doctoral degrees are not offered at all in Gaza or the West Bank.

Israel forbids Gaza residents from studying in Israel or the West Bank, and rarely permits foreign professors and lecturers to visit Gaza to teach.

Most of the students are waiting for permission to leave Gaza, either to get visas for the countries where they have been admitted to universities or to travel to those countries directly. Many started their studies in previous years and were trapped in Gaza when they returned home for the summer.

In some cases, Israeli authorities have given students exit permits but then refused to let them leave via the passenger crossing at Erez due to unspecified “security concerns.”

Among the roughly 670 students, some 400 are trying to pursue their studies in Egypt. The southern crossing from Gaza to Egypt at Rafah has been closed since June 9, 2007, at Israel’s insistence. Reopening it requires the participation of Israel, Egypt, and the Palestinian Authority, under the terms of the 2005 Agreement on Movement and Access. Israel has declared its opposition to reopening Rafah. Both Egypt and the Palestinian Authority appear to have acquiesced to Israel’s demand, and have not pressed for the crossing to reopen.