Palestinian Students Trapped in Gaza by Israeli Border Closures
Gaza City, Palestine — Despite receiving scholarships to universities across the world, approximately 1,000 Palestinian students remain trapped in Gaza as Israel controls the borders and won’t let them out. Hundreds of the stranded students gathered outside the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate in Gaza City on April 20 to demand the opening of the Rafah crossing so they can attend school abroad.
“We’ve come today to appeal to anyone who will look into our situation” said student organizer Raghad Alian to Unicorn Riot, “any decision-maker, any official, anyone who will consider the students’ plight as a humanitarian issue.” Alian has now missed two years of school.
The student movement “Between the Dream and the Crossing,” is now needed said Alian, “because of the long wait at the Rafah crossing and our inability to exercise our most basic rights … rights that human rights organizations and the international community claim every person on earth possesses.”
Akram Haroun, told UR that he’s been accepted into the University of Wales in the UK but he’s been trapped in Gaza, seeking to leave. “This is my third gap year and I’m trying to get out,” he said. “I haven’t been studying much. I didn’t find any passion that I could pursue. So, my only hope is to get out at this point.”
“Our dreams and our purpose are on hold,” said Riman Awad, a student who was accepted by the University of Alberta after “a long, competitive process but I’m still trapped in Gaza due to the border situation here.”
Awad said they couldn’t leave Gaza without doing their biometrics but that they can’t do their biometrics in Gaza, “so we need a solution.”
Awad is among more than 130 Palestinian students in Gaza that have been accepted to Canadian universities but cannot leave because Canada’s visa applications require students to submit fingerprints and photographs, or biometric data — which cannot be done inside Gaza. Students would normally travel to Egypt or the occupied West Bank to get their biometrics done but are being blocked by Israel.
Recently, Canada waived its biometric requirement for Ukrainian applicants after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Students are asking for similar treatment here.
“I ask the government to look at us with compassion and mercy by evacuating the students like countries like Ukraine,” said Heba Abed, “to facilitate the procedures for us or to waive the biometrics, because we are currently unable to leave Gaza City to submit the biometrics.”
Abed said she’d also postponed her studies multiple times.
“We ask the decision makers and everyone who can help us – find a solution for us. We need the chance to travel out of Gaza to continue our education, our dreams, to complete our education and then return to Gaza to build Gaza again.”
Riman Awad, Palestinian student unable to leave Gaza to study abroad
Help support Unicorn Riot contributor Mohamed El Saife as he seeks to get his family out of Gaza.
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