Life in the shadow of the settlement of Beit El: Going to school in a state of constant peril

(B’Tselem) – Al-Jalazun Refugee Camp is located north of Ramallah and has a population of some 14,000, around 5,000 of whom are minors. In 1977, the settlement of Beit El was built near the camp, which led to permanent military presence in the area, observation towers and patrols along the nearby road and the area between the road and the settlement. Near the southeastern entrance to al-Jalazun R.C. are two UNRWA-run schools, one for boys and one for girls. They have an overall student body of 2,000, in grades one to nine. The military has imposed several arbitrary restrictions on these schools: The military prohibited the addition of a third floor to the boys’ school. As a result, the school continues to be short on classrooms. It compelled UNRWA to place the east-facing windows – i.e., the windows facing the settlement of Beit El – in both schools, flush with the ceiling and severely limited how wide the windows could be, resulting in insufficient light and airflow in the classrooms. It has also ordered the schools’ roof lights be kept on all night.

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