This week, a mortar bomb struck an elementary school in the neighbourhood of Al-Zahira in southern Damascus, Syria, causing injuries among its students.
On 06 November, mortar shells landed on the Aaisha al-Sidiqa school, causing significant material damage to the school and injuring four first-grade students, the state news agency SANA reported.
The injured students were taken to a nearby hospital for medical treatment.
Unrest throughout
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to the United Nations, more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions displaced by the violence. The UN also said that more than four million other Syrians will be forced out of their homes in 2014 by the escalating conflict in the country.
“Schools must be a safe sanctuary in cases of conflict,” stressed EI General Secretary. “What happened in Syria recently, as in too many corners of the globe unfortunately, is a clear violation of the right to education. The safety and security of learners, teachers, education personnel and academics everywhere must be ensured, international law strengthened, and impunity ended.”
Only by providing quality education to all can we bring tolerance and learn to live together in peace within communities, he said.