East Jerusalem schools suspend classes after Israel restricts permits

Dozens of private schools in east Jerusalem have suspended classes after an Israeli decision to limit the days on which work permits are granted for teachers from the occupied West Bank, Palestinian officials said Tuesday.

The strike was called by the General Secretariat of Christian Educational Institutions in Jerusalem and later joined by all private schools in east Jerusalem.

The move affects around 20,000 students, including 8,500 pupils in 15 Christian schools, according to Richard Zananiri, director of the private St George's School.

The General Secretariat said 171 teachers and staff members are affected by the Israeli measure.

Zananiri said this represents more than half of the roughly 300 teachers employed across all private schools in the city.

COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry body responsible for Palestinian civilian affairs, did not offer an immediate response.

The Secretariat described the measure as "arbitrary".

Zananiri said the problem began when Israel initially excluded Saturdays from teacher permits.

Following objections, permits were restored for Saturdays but then excluded Fridays and Sundays.

School officials said the exclusion was unacceptable, noting that educational programmes and extracurricular activities are held on those days.

The Secretariat warned that schools would be unable to maintain regular operation of the second academic term under the current restrictions.

"We are not happy that children are staying at home," Zananiri said, blaming Israel for the suspension of classes.

He said contacts are ongoing with authorities to ensure permits cover all days of the week.

Zananiri also said that a separate Israeli decision barred Palestinian schools in east Jerusalem from employing teachers from the city who obtained university degrees from Palestinian institutions.

He noted that Israel had also banned the hiring of new teachers from the West Bank in east Jerusalem schools since last year.

Israel has occupied east Jerusalem since 1967 and later annexed it in a move not recognised by the international community.

Palestinians view east Jerusalem as the capital of their future state.

Israel has also closed six schools in east Jerusalem run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, following the war in Gaza.

Israel has repeatedly accused UNRWA of providing cover for Hamas militants, claiming that some of its employees took part in the group's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked the war in Gaza.

A series of investigations found some "neutrality-related issues" at UNRWA, but stressed Israel had not provided conclusive evidence for its headline allegation.

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