Today, high school students in the West Bank are receiving their results from their final high school exam, the Tawjihi, a national examination taken by all graduating high school students.
Inside the Zionist colonial prisons, 55 Palestinian high school students are currently being imprisoned, deprived of the possibility of obtaining their diploma.
Throughout the West Bank, in tribute to the martyrs and in the face of the ongoing genocide in Gaza, Palestinian families receiving their tawjihi results have chosen not to celebrate today, which is normally an occasion of joy and sharing.
This year, there are no firecrackers or fireworks in the streets. The cities of the West Bank are empty and silent. With dignity, confronting the seriousness of the current situation, high school students across Palestine are dedicating their academic achievements to the martyrs, prisoners and the people of Gaza, with silence and calm accompanying prayers.
The fellow students, families and comrades of the high school students who have been martyred, sometimes fighting to defend their camps, cities and homeland against the invading Zionist army, are honoring their memories today by offering sweets and water to their communities.
The families of the martyrs gather at the graves or in their homes, consoling themselves by gazing upon the photos and portraits of their loved ones that hang on their walls, like the mother of Basil Ayman Al-Ghazawi from Jenin camp, who was deprived of the joy of high school graduation and success, after he was assassinated, along with his brother Mohammed, in Ibn Sina hospital, by the Zionist army.
The children of the prisoners are thinking of their mothers and fathers in prison, eagerly awaiting their child’s results. For example, the prisoner Siham Abu Ayyash, from Beit Ummar, Al Khalil, the mother of twins. Both received their results today and dedicated their achievements to their mother and her fellow prisoners before sharing their immense sadness at the thought of their compatriots in Gaza.
In the Gaza Strip, confronting ongoing US-Zionist genocide since last October, thousands of students and hundreds of teachers have been murdered by the Zionist army. The education system is completely destroyed, and only a few high school students from Gaza have been able to graduate in unimaginable conditions, most of them in exile.
Glory to the martyrs, freedom for the prisoners!
From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!
