Malala Yousafzai, the schoolgirl shot in the head by the Taliban for championing girls’ right to education, is donating $50,000 to help rebuild schools in Gaza.
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala, 17, is using cash she was given for winning the World Children’s Prize to rebuild U.N. schools destroyed by fighting between Israel and Palestine.
Malala, who was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen on a school bus two years ago, praised the U.N. agency for ‘performing heroic work to serve children in Gaza, in very difficult circumstances.’
She added: ‘The needs are overwhelming – more than half of Gaza’s population is under 18 years of age. They want and deserve quality education, hope and real opportunities to build a future.
‘This funding will help rebuild the 83 schools damaged during the recent conflict. Innocent Palestinian children have suffered terribly and for too long.
‘We must all work to ensure Palestinian boys and girls, and all children everywhere, receive a quality education in a safe environment.
‘Because without education, there will never be peace. Let us stand together for peace and education because together we are more powerful.’
Dozens of Gaza’s schools were damaged or destroyed during the 50-day war, in which Israel accused Hamas of hiding weapons near the buildings to maximise civilian casualties for political ends.
UNRWA commissioner-general Pierre Krähenbühl said: ‘We share with you the profound belief in the importance of education as a means to lift young girls and boys out of isolation and oppression.
‘You have become a symbol of the boundless potential that lies within each and every child on earth.
‘You are an aspirational figure to the next generation in Palestine and beyond. You are an inspiration to all of us. Thank you.’
UNRWA was established in 1949, and its mission is to assist 5million Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
