Post by Janjoon-Lebanese on Oct 9, 2006 11:20:35 GMT -5
Repair Delay Return of Students to Public Schools
09-10-06
BY: NAHARNET
The first day back at school for about half of Lebanese schoolchildren will be delayed for another week because war-damaged schools
Construction, Repair Delay Return of Students to Public Schools
The first day back at school for about half of Lebanese schoolchildren will be delayed for another week because war-damaged schools are still being repaired, the education minister said Sunday.
Private schools, which are attended by around half of Lebanon's one million students, "will, in principle, begin classes on October 9, and public schools on the 16th," said Education Minister Khaled Kabbani during a tour of the south, which was hardest hit by the month-long Israeli offensive.
The government was working hard to make sure "each student has a place" and vowed that "all students will be at their desks by October 16," Kabbani said on a visit to Khiam, which was the scene of heavy fighting between Hizbullah fighters and Israeli troops.
We have to overcome a number of challenges to rebuild and repair the schools," he said, acknowledging that a previously set date of October 9 for back-to-school across the country could not be reached due to ongoing construction and repair.
The government has said around 50 schools were destroyed and 300 damaged by the war between Israel and Hizbullah which ended on August 14.
Reconstruction costs have been estimated at 70 million dollars.
Several Arab countries and the U.N. children's agency UNICEF have been helping rebuild schools and have handed out schools supplies to children. The first day back at school was initially planned for mid to late September.
Around 1,200 civilians were killed in Lebanon during the war. Thirty percent of the deaths were among children aged 12 and under.
09-10-06
BY: NAHARNET
The first day back at school for about half of Lebanese schoolchildren will be delayed for another week because war-damaged schools
Construction, Repair Delay Return of Students to Public Schools
The first day back at school for about half of Lebanese schoolchildren will be delayed for another week because war-damaged schools are still being repaired, the education minister said Sunday.
Private schools, which are attended by around half of Lebanon's one million students, "will, in principle, begin classes on October 9, and public schools on the 16th," said Education Minister Khaled Kabbani during a tour of the south, which was hardest hit by the month-long Israeli offensive.
The government was working hard to make sure "each student has a place" and vowed that "all students will be at their desks by October 16," Kabbani said on a visit to Khiam, which was the scene of heavy fighting between Hizbullah fighters and Israeli troops.
We have to overcome a number of challenges to rebuild and repair the schools," he said, acknowledging that a previously set date of October 9 for back-to-school across the country could not be reached due to ongoing construction and repair.
The government has said around 50 schools were destroyed and 300 damaged by the war between Israel and Hizbullah which ended on August 14.
Reconstruction costs have been estimated at 70 million dollars.
Several Arab countries and the U.N. children's agency UNICEF have been helping rebuild schools and have handed out schools supplies to children. The first day back at school was initially planned for mid to late September.
Around 1,200 civilians were killed in Lebanon during the war. Thirty percent of the deaths were among children aged 12 and under.
