University students in Gaza persist in studies despite dire conditions, destroyed schools

Students enrolled in higher education in Gaza remain uncertain about the future of their studies, as Israeli attacks have destroyed 80 percent of the universities in the enclave.

In a nylon tent in the middle of a camp for displaced persons, Malak Al-Ghoul is one of some 90,000 university students kept away from their classrooms. Despite the trying conditions, she remains determined to continue her education even as hopes for a ceasefire fade.

"I am trying in every way to prevent the conflict from stopping me or destroying the dream that I started with. I was supposed to have completed my second year of study, but I have not lost hope. I will continue to try and overcome the difficulties of accessing the internet to record and review my lectures, and I will accomplish that," Al-Ghoul said.

Al-Ghoul family was displaced from Gaza City to the southern Gaza Strip. Now in a displaced persons camp, her parents are struggling to provide the necessities of daily life to their children, but they do what they can to help her realize her dreams of completing her education.

"My daughter faced many difficulties at first and had to walk to cafeterias to access the internet. The connection was later available in our area. It is difficult for us to pay the high internet access charges, but we will do everything possible to achieve our dream of educating our children – even through the harsh conditions of war," said Um Ahmad, Malak’s mother.

Teachers and professors also feel the impact of the war, but they continue to provide guidance to their students in any way possible to maintain some form of education, according to Zuhair Al-Masry, dean of the faculty of arts at Al-Azhar University, which was also destroyed in the war.

"We insist on our right to life. From this standpoint, we at Al-Azhar University are trying to continue the educational process as much as possible, despite the lack of electricity and internet. Our students suffer greatly from the continuous and repeated displacements and the lack of electricity, water and communications, in addition to anxiety disorders and fear in the shadow of war," he said.

According to the Palestinian Ministry of Higher Education, Israel is deliberately blocking education for the Palestinians by destroying their academic institutions. It killed no less than 555 university students and 100 academics during the war, in addition to destroying 290 schools and disrupting the education of 625,000 children.

University students in Gaza persist in studies despite dire conditions, destroyed schools

University students in Gaza persist in studies despite dire conditions, destroyed schools

Chinese cities, towns and villages are putting on dazzling light and lantern shows, staging distinctive folk customs performances, and holding festive mooncake banquets in celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Tuesday.

The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most important festivals in Chinese culture. It falls on the 15th day of the eighth month on the Chinese lunar calendar and dates back more than a millennium. As a festival in honor of the moon and harvest, families reunite on the occasion to admire the bright full moon, light lanterns, and share the holiday pastry of mooncakes.

In the ancient city of Kaifeng of central China's Henan Province and Jinzhou City of northeast China's Liaoning Province, popular tourist attractions and landmarks are bathed in lights, promising a mesmerizing nighttime experience for local residents and tourists alike.

Beijing's famous Beihai Park, a public park and former imperial garden, is staging performances themed around bianzhong, or Chinese chime bells which has a history of over 2,000 years.

In tourist towns and villages of Yunnan Province in the southwest, Zhejiang Province in th east and Guangdong Province in the south, lively folk and dragon dances are gathering numerous locals and tourists to join in the festivities.

Audiences are enjoying a poetry recitation show in Hefei City, east China's Anhui Province, and a symphony in Zunyi City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, respectively.

This year, Suining City in southwest China's Sichuan Province and Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the northwest, have both prepared giant freshly made mooncakes enough to treat hundreds of people at a same time. And in a village of the southwestern Chongqing Municipality, people have prepared their own mooncakes on a flour ground from their newly harvested red sorghum.

"We are filled with the joy of harvest during the merry traditional festival. The festive mood is really nice," said Liu Ya, a local of Jiangjun Village in Chongqing's Bishan District.

Elsewhere, villages in Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, are also celebrating their harvest of red pepper by drying them on the roofs. And another village in the eastern province of Shandong has recently held a large banquet for local households to share.

Outside the mainland, colorful lanterns are also dotting the various landmarks, streets and alleyways of Hong Kong and Macao, adding to the festive joy.

Celebrations held across China to mark traditional Mid-Autumn Festival