A grassroots-funded school has opened in Khallet Taha in the southern occupied West Bank, allowing 40 Palestinian children to attend classes closer to home after years of walking up to five kilometers each day.
The new facility improves access to education in a rural area where distance and movement constraints have limited schooling, positioning the classroom as a stable space for children growing up in a conflict-affected setting.
Forty girls and boys have begun attending classes at the school, according to a report by Agenzia iNfo Salesiana.
The school was built under the “Juzoor – A School for Freedom” initiative led by the Salesian NGO VIS – International Volunteering for Development, in partnership with Italian and Palestinian groups, including the “Toni Lucci” School of Peace in Bra, the Bra Youth Council, and the Cuneo Network for Palestine, with support from the Municipality of Bra in northern Italy.
More than 500 donors contributed over €120,000 to the project. Organizers described the effort as “a grassroots mobilization that transformed solidarity into action,” creating “a bridge between Italy and Palestine built on trust, responsibility, and participation.”
“Juzoor,” meaning “roots” in Arabic, reflects the aim of “building a free and solid foundation and identity for the future through education.”
Construction began Nov. 26, 2025, and continued despite tensions in the area. Organizers said the project became “a powerful symbol: building while destruction unfolds around us.”
The school includes four classrooms, a children’s area, restrooms, and an internal courtyard, providing what organizers described as a safe place for children to study and grow.
Organizers said the initiative will expand to include psychological support and pediatric care, alongside plans to build another school in the Yatta area, including the Aisha Khalil school near the Masafer Yatta hills in the Hebron governorate.
