The Intifada: Causes and Effects by Aryeh Shalev

Author:Aryeh Shalev [Shalev, Aryeh]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Middle Eastern, Social Science, Political Science, World, Regional Studies
ISBN: 9781000302622
Google: PgaiDwAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 49333870
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2019-07-11T00:00:00+00:00

School Closures

In Judea and Samaria the primary means utilized by the Civil Administration to restrain the uprising was the closing of schools. In the Gaza Strip, in contrast, there were few cases of a comprehensive shut-down of the educational system. The difference in approach derived from two main reasons: in the Gaza Strip few schools are located on the roads used by Israeli traffic, whereas in Judea-Samaria hundreds of schools are located along arteries used by Israeli vehicles; and in the Gaza Strip the Islamic movements, which place a high premium on education, urged the population not to involve the schools in violence. At the level of higher education, all the universities in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip were closed at the beginning of the intifada, and remained so for an extended period of time.

Since 1967 schools and universities in the Territories have frequently been catalysts for disturbances. In periods of political tension or on key Palestinian dates the very fact that pupils and students are concentrated in one place has sparked violent disturbances. At such times masked agitators would enter the schools and incite pupils to take to the streets in violent activity. If such actions persisted, the authorities would temporarily shut down the school or university involved, and this restored quiet and deterred other institutions. Rarely were more than a few schools closed down simultaneously. Prior to the intifada, the prevailing concept held that there was no need for a blanket shutdown of the entire educational system.

Although the schools certainly served as hothouses for organization, incitement, indoctrination and violence, the mass shutdown of all the schools in Judea-Samaria was hardly convenient for Israel. This measure signified that under a continuing state of emergency, Israel was incapable of enabling regular studies to take place. Possibly if the measure had been implemented at the very start of the uprising against a small number of schools involved in particularly serious rioting (declaring such institutions closed for half a year to make it perfectly clear that the entire school year would be lost), others might have been deterred.

Here senior Civil Administration officials argue that in cases

Table 5 Incidents in Judea-Samaria when schools were open/closed, IDF Spokesman figures

Periods When Schools were Open Periods When Schools were Closed Number of Incidents Following the Opening/ Closing of Schools

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