East Jerusalem schools strike after Israel fails to renew teaching staff permits

More than 70 staff members missing from east Jerusalem schools have halted the start of the school year. Multiple private schools began an open-ended strike on Tuesday after Israel reportedly failed to renew their entry permits without warning.

The General Secretariat for Christian Educational Institutions of Jerusalem said the absent staff included personnel needed for teaching, administration, health services, cleaning, and safety procedures. Without them, the schools said they could not provide students with a “safe and stable” learning environment.

The affected schools serve about 15,000 students, according to figures from the east Jerusalem organization Ir Amim. School owners said they hoped the crisis would be resolved quickly and that similar measures would not recur, allowing the institutions to continue their educational and humanitarian work.

The strike has also emerged amid Palestinian concerns that Israel plans to impose its curriculum on 45,000 students in grades one through seven in east Jerusalem. Israel attempted to introduce its own curriculum after the Six-Day War in 1967, but abandoned the effort after strong opposition.

The dispute comes as the Palestinian education sector faces wider financial pressure. Palestinian Authority-run schools have reduced classes to three days a week because of funding problems, according to the report.

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We pray and hope that this crisis will be resolved as quickly as possible, that such measures will cease and not recur in the future, thereby preserving the stability of our educational institutions and guaranteeing students’ right to orderly and safe education, while enabling our schools to continue their authentic educational, pedagogical, and humanitarian mission.