The smallest school in Palestine, surviving against the odds

Yanun is an isolated Palestinian village southeast of Nablus in the northern West Bank.

It has been persistently targeted by the Israeli army, which demolishes villagers' homes and displaces residents. Yet the school, defiantly, remains open.

The students are determined to pursue their education. It is small. Only seven students study here. Another seven work here: the teaching staff, the principal and a messenger.

The principal, Ayman Abu Shehab, told al-Araby al-Jadeed about the unusual status of the school, which was built in 1970.

"The area of the school in which seven students study alongside a seven member staff is 100sqm. The reason for this small area is that the occupation prohibits building here, which is designated as Area C by the Oslo Accords, shared between the Palestinians and Israelis," he said.

We are candidates for martyrdom here. - Abu Shehab, school principal

The principal and teachers try now and then to expand the school, but their attempts have been unsuccessful.

Recently, metal sheets were installed to protect the school stairs from rain, but Israeli authorities issued an order to demolish the shelter, saying it had been "built without a licence".

Difficulties

Studying at the Yanun school is not an easy matter.

Its students live far from the school and the roads leading to it are not safe, because of the occupation and the settlers who live nearby. The education directorate in Nablus provides a minibus to transport students to school in the morning, but the teachers have to transport them back to their homes in their private cars after school.

In spite of the difficulties, Abu Shehab jokes. "These students are lucky because they have what no other student in the whole world has: Each one of them has a teacher."

The students and their level of educational achievement continues to be affected by their fear of soldiers and settlers' harassment. "This is the strongest," said Abu Shehab. "It is a psychological factor."

"If no more students are enrolled during the next five years, the Ministry of Education is thinking of demolishing the school.... Fear remains, all the same, that the Israelis will demolish it or the settlers will attack a student or block their way. We are candidates for martyrdom here."

The students are worried for their school and their own educational future. They inhabit a surreal classroom scene, absent of other students.

We perform the Palestinian national anthem in a school room quietly so as not to be heard and targeted by the settlers. - Hisham Hamael, teacher

Hisham Hamael is one of the teachers here.

He speaks about the problems which the school, teachers and students face together.

"We are exposed to many problems day after day because we are in a remote area surrounded by settlements in all directions," he told al-Araby. "We cannot raise the flag of Palestine or hold the morning assembly. We perform the Palestinian national anthem in a school room quietly so as not to be heard and targeted by the settlers," he said.

"In addition, we do not allow the students to leave the borders of the school, lest they get harassed by the settlers. We are in an area isolated from the rest of the Palestinian villages."

Nabil, one of the students, agreed that students' fears prevent them from learning.

"We are afraid for ourselves during the school hours because the settlers are always harassing us and attacking us inside the school," he said. "If we get a little far from the street, we will face harassment."

Yanun besieged

Very few people go to Yanun under normal circumstances. But whoever heads to the village, its houses and school, has to venture along rough, unpaved roads.

The village itself looks like a place from a past century. The occupying authorities prevent construction, saying permits need to be granted for any such building work. At the same time, officials refuse to grant building permits to Palestinians, while the Israeli settlements - illegal under international law - besiege Palestinian family homes and the village's school on all sides.

This is an edited translation from our Arabic edition.