By Anadolu

Article published on 18 Jul 202618 Jul 2026.

The destruction of schools has been a recurring issue in the conflict, with earlier attacks documented by UNESCO.

According to Lebanon's education minister, the Israeli military looted and destroyed three schools in the south of the country.

Israel “looted” the schools before using explosives to reduce them into “piles of ashes”, Education and Higher Education Minister Rima Karami said in a statement carried by Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) on Friday.

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Karami said the schools had been added to the growing list of educational institutions destroyed during the conflict.

The fighting in Lebanon escalated into a full-scale war in March after months of cross-border exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah following the start of the Gaza genocide in October 2023. Israel says it is targeting Hezbollah.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said in June that 17 schools in Lebanon had been destroyed in Lebanon and more than 100 damaged. The latest demolitions bring the number of destroyed schools to at least 20.

About 500,000 Lebanese children remain out of school because of the conflict, according to UNESCO, which warns that prolonged interruptions to education can have lasting consequences for children’s development and wellbeing.

The destruction of Lebanon’s schools and education system is taking place “before the eyes of the entire world”, Karami said, despite international commitments to protect schools during armed conflict.

Karami urged the international community to apply pressure on Israel to stop attacking educational institutions and to protect schools from military operations.

According to Lebanese authorities, Israeli attacks since March have killed at least 4,324 people, injured 12,223, and displaced more than one million others. The dead include 250 children.

Lebanon and Israel signed a US-mediated framework agreement on June 26, providing for a phased Israeli withdrawal from all occupied Lebanese territory. The agreement does not set a timetable for the withdrawal, and instead links it to the disarmament of Hezbollah in the occupied territory.

The UN Development Programme (UNDP) has estimated that more than 11,000 buildings in southern Lebanon have been destroyed since the conflict escalated in March.

These demolitions contravene international commitments to safeguard educational institutions during armed conflict. UNESCO has warned that prolonged school closures can have lasting effects on children's development and well-being. The displacement of over one million people further compounds the educational crisis.