Gaza / Husni Nedim / Anadolu

- Shireen Abu Al-Kas: I had determination and patience for everything I faced in my life; I lost my legs and my family in an Israeli bombing

- Sanaa Abu Al-Kas, Shireen's aunt: I want the world to help her with treatment, education, and prosthetics so she can walk

Despite her success in the high school exams, the joy of Palestinian student Shireen Abu Al-Kas remained incomplete after losing all her family members in an Israeli airstrike that targeted their home east of Gaza City, in which she was injured and had her legs amputated.

On Friday, the Palestinian Ministry of Education announced high school exam results under exceptional circumstances for students in the Gaza Strip, many of whom continued studying amidst displacement after the disruption of education and Israel's destruction of most schools.

On May 25, 2025, Israeli warplanes bombed Shireen's family home in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood east of Gaza City, killing 17 family members and injuring her, resulting in the amputation of her legs.

Israel, with American support, launched a genocidal war on Gaza on October 8, 2023, which lasted two years and left over 73,000 dead and more than 173,000 wounded, in addition to destruction affecting nearly 90% of civilian infrastructure.

Despite a ceasefire agreement in effect since October 2025, Israel continues to violate it, besiege Gaza, impose severe restrictions on the movement of people, goods, and aid, as well as ongoing military operations.

** A harsh journey

Shireen (18 years old), who lives in her relatives' home after losing her family, told Anadolu correspondent: "I was still in the hospital, unable to stand or sit due to my injury, but I decided to continue the high school journey and resolved to pursue my education despite everything."

She adds, sitting in a wheelchair: "Throughout my educational journey, I studied and did not give in to despair. I had determination and patience for everything I faced in my life; I lost my legs, I lost my family, and I lost our entire home."

Shireen asserts that she did not let the traumas she experienced control her life, saying: "I decided to be a person capable of doing everything and overcoming the impossible, even after losing my legs."

She believes that "determination, patience, and perseverance were key factors in continuing her life and studies," noting that "the support she received from her relatives helped her overcome her ordeal."

** Loyalty to family

Shireen says she dedicates her success in high school "to the souls of my family members I lost in the Israeli bombing."

She adds: "I dedicate my success to my family in heaven, and I tell them I am proud of you, and I think you are proud of me because I challenged my injury, your loss, and the loss of our home, and I overcame everything I went through."

Shireen looks forward to getting prosthetics outside the Gaza Strip, returning to walking and living a normal life, as well as continuing her university education in the field she dreams of.

She says: "My message to the world is that I want to get prosthetics abroad, return to walking and my normal life, and study the major I want and achieve my dream."

She also hopes for the end of the Israeli genocidal war in Gaza and that the injured can travel for treatment, saying: "I hope the bloodshed stops and the world helps everyone in need of treatment."

** Family support

Since Shireen's injury, her aunt Sanaa Abu Al-Kas has been caring for her, and she tells Anadolu correspondent that she considers her a daughter and accompanied her through treatment and study.

Sanaa continues: "Shireen has been under my care since the incident, and from that day she became my daughter. Thank God, He comforted her, and she and her cousin achieved good results in high school."

She adds: "I hope their future is bright and that God compensates them for everything they lost, and that they can complete their education and reach the positions they dream of."

Sanaa appeals to international and humanitarian organizations to help Shireen obtain treatment and prosthetics, saying: "I want the world to look at her as they look at their own children, and to help her with treatment, education, and prosthetics so she can walk like other girls."

She affirms that "providing treatment, prosthetics, and educational support will help Shireen and her cousin continue their lives and achieve their dreams, after losing family members and suffering injuries during the Israeli genocidal war in Gaza."

On Friday, Palestinian Minister of Education Amjad Barham said that about 89,000 students took the high school exams this year in the occupied West Bank, including occupied East Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip, in addition to more than 2,000 students in 46 countries.

He added that more than 106,000 students took the high school exams in the Gaza Strip over the past three years, including 36,900 this year.

Barham pointed out that Israel killed more than 1,100 students who were supposed to take the high school exams this year.

The Gaza Strip is living under the weight of the Israeli genocidal war, which led to the destruction of hundreds of schools and universities, disruption of education, and forcing thousands of students to continue their studies under exceptional circumstances, including tents and shelters.