The United Nations and international agencies on Tuesday warned that the Palestinian education system in the Gaza Strip might not be well prepared for new school year.

At a joint news conference, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator Philippe Lazzarini, who represents the UN aid organizations in the Palestinian territories, and the Association of International Development Agencies (AIDA), representing at least 25 NGOs, called for free access into and out of Gaza in particular to reform the education system there.

Israel has been imposing a siege on Gaza since June 2007, allowing only little more than basic food and medicine to enter. In December last year, it launched a ground operation in Gaza, destroying 18 schools completely and damaging at least 280, according to UN and AIDA.

The Hamas government, which has been controlling Gaza for more than two years, said the damage to the schools and universities during the Israeli Operation Cast Lead are worth more than US$12 million.

None of the schools have been rebuilt or properly rehabilitated due to the lack of construction materials. The blockade has also caused shortage in textbooks, uniforms and other stuff into Gaza, the agencies said.

"The blockade has caused untold suffering to children in Gaza, who face another academic year in terrible conditions", said Lazzarini.

At the conference, held in front of the rubble of the American International School (AIS), Sigrid Kaag, UNICEF regional director, said that the blockade threatens the basic rights of children and threatens to ruin the shining success achieved in the field of education.

She called on Israel to immediately ease the delivery of construction materials and to ensure the movement of teachers and experts into and out of the Gaza Strip to keep the education process running.

Jerry Farrell, with the Save the Children Alliance, said that the Palestinian and international educational institutions, from elementary schools to universities, can not easily get new computers or spare parts for maintaining the existed machines.

Israel refuses to open the Gaza commercial crossings freely as long as Hamas is in power in the impoverished coastal enclave.

During the 22-day Gaza war, more than 1,400 Palestinians were killed, among them 164 students and 12 teachers, according to the Palestinian official statistics.

(Xinhua News Agency July 29, 2009)