the Launch of the Right to Education Marathon (United Against Scholasticide)

The Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) announced the launch of the Right to Education Marathon under the slogan ‘United against 'Scholasticide’, under the auspices of the Ministry and the initiative of Birzeit University, the Friends of Birzeit University, the Higher Council for Youth and Sport, and the Taawon Welfare Association and organised by the Palestinian higher education institutions.

More than a year after the genocidal war in the Gaza Strip, this marathon comes in defiance of the Israeli occupation's practices, with the aim of working together to ensure that students in Gaza continue to enjoy their right to university education. It is also a rejection of all plans that aim to erase existing academic institutions. The organisers of this event face a collective national responsibility that calls for united action to aid Gaza's universities and colleges, and reject the scholasticide.

The participants will launch the marathon as a major national and international campaign, in which marathons will be held at all Palestinian higher education institutions in every governorate in the West Bank, to coincide with the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People on Friday 29 November 2024.

This initiative comes in response to the call issued by Gaza universities to resist the ongoing ‘Scholasticide’ campaign in Palestine in general, and in Gaza in particular. It is a continuation of the unified call issued by Palestinian universities for justice and freedom in Palestine. Today, in light of the intensified campaigns of oppression and tyranny, and the restriction of freedom of movement in the West Bank; the effects of the ongoing aggression on the public and higher education sectors in Palestine are manifested in the form of a systematic scholasticide, as the occupation has deliberately hit the infrastructure. The effects of the ongoing aggression on the public and higher education sectors in Palestine are manifested in the form of a systematic scholasticide, as the occupation deliberately hit and destroyed the infrastructure of Gaza's universities and colleges, and targeted its scientific cadres with a systematic genocide, with the aim of keeping future generations illiterate.

For Gaza, the events will start from Palestinian universities in the West Bank, with the participation of regional and international universities, advocacy movements of students, academics and international activists,and social media influencers, both physically and virtually; to rejectthe Scholasticide in Gaza. Participants during the marathon will raise the slogan of the right to education and the rejection of scholasticide, to support higher education institutions in Gaza.

All proceeds from the marathon will go to support students of higher education institutions in Gaza through the Taawon Foundation, under the supervision and guidance of the Ministry of Higher Education, and in coordination with Gaza's universities and colleges to support their ability to survive and persevere.

Tickets, which will be made available electronically, will be open for purchase on 16 November 2024, as well as any other donations locally and internationally, through the following channels:

● The Taawon Welfare Association Website: https://www.taawon.org/ar/marathon

● Through Jawwal's exclusive centres and agents across the country.

● For more information about the marathon, please visit the official Palestine Marathon website: https://palestinemarathon.org