Before the Israel-Hamas war broke out last October, Halaa Hamdan’s daily routine was built around her life at Al Aqsa University in Gaza.
The fourth-year English studies student dedicated her time to studying her courses, and even teaching English at a polytechnic, an opportunity she dreamed of that came to her only two weeks before the war started.
“When I wake up, I’d have a routine, going to the university, meeting my professors, taking the courses I want and fulfilling my course hours,” she said.
“Now it’s all gone.”
According to Palestinian official data, all 12 of Gaza’s higher education institutions have been destroyed or damaged, and more than 350 teachers and academics have been killed. Hamdan is one of 90,000 higher education students whose studies have been interrupted.
But now she and other students are feeling a bit of hope as students and faculty at Al Aqsa University and Gaza University are resuming …