Palestinians Protest Israeli-approved Textbooks in East Jerusalem Schools
2022-10-05
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1Palestinian parents in East Jerusalem are protesting books that Israeli officials require schools to use.
2The Palestinians say that the textbooks have been censored by the Israelis.
3They say the books are important to their history, religion, and heritage and should not be changed.
4But Israeli officials say the textbooks contained material that could incite violence.
5Recently, protesters gave out copies of the uncensored textbooks outside of a school in East Jerusalem.
6In mid-September, Palestinian protesters led a one-day strike.
7Many parents demonstrated, carrying banners with slogans including: "No to the Israelization of education".
8Palestinians shared examples of the changes made by Israeli censors on social media.
9One change removed part of an Arabic poem that talked about an Israeli security checkpoint.
10Another change removed information about treaties that divided the Middle East in the past.
11And a third removed an image of a key, which is the symbol of Palestinian refugees.
12But Israeli officials gave their own examples.
13The officials said they changed an exercise asking children to name Palestinians held in "the occupation's prisons" to one that asks them to name the bird that is a sign of peace.
14Another change removed words accusing Israel of destroying Palestinians' heritage and stealing art works.
15The textbook also contained a map that did not include the word Israel.
16In July, Israeli officials wanted to take away the licenses of six schools.
17The officials said they had given the schools one year to use an approved version of the Palestinian Authority's curriculum.
18A city official said Israelis offered the schools a choice of using the Israeli curriculum, but Palestinians disagree.
19A 2016 report by the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs commented on the issue.
20It said Israeli officials have used financial incentives to pressure East Jerusalem schools to teach the Israeli curriculum.
21Israel captured East Jerusalem in 1967 and later annexed it.
22The move was not internationally recognized.
23It is estimated that Palestinians make up 38 percent of Jerusalem's population.
24Five percent of them are Israeli citizens.
25Palestinians consider East Jerusalem the capital of a future Palestinian state that would include the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.
26Parents and teachers have mostly blocked attempts to use Israeli-approved teaching materials in East Jerusalem.
27That part of the city began using a Palestinian curriculum in the 1990s.
28Reuters reports that a city official said 15 percent of East Jerusalem's student population is taught the Israeli curriculum.
29He said 10 years ago, it was three percent.
30Tareq Akash is a parent who worries about that increase.
31He fears people may no longer remember the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the 1948 war that led to the creation of Israel.
32"We will not allow the brainwashing of our children," he said at last Monday's demonstration.
33I'm Andrew Smith.
1Palestinian parents in East Jerusalem are protesting books that Israeli officials require schools to use. 2The Palestinians say that the textbooks have been censored by the Israelis. They say the books are important to their history, religion, and heritage and should not be changed. But Israeli officials say the textbooks contained material that could incite violence. 3Recently, protesters gave out copies of the uncensored textbooks outside of a school in East Jerusalem. In mid-September, Palestinian protesters led a one-day strike. Many parents demonstrated, carrying banners with slogans including: "No to the Israelization of education". 4Palestinians shared examples of the changes made by Israeli censors on social media. One change removed part of an Arabic poem that talked about an Israeli security checkpoint. Another change removed information about treaties that divided the Middle East in the past. And a third removed an image of a key, which is the symbol of Palestinian refugees. 5But Israeli officials gave their own examples. The officials said they changed an exercise asking children to name Palestinians held in "the occupation's prisons" to one that asks them to name the bird that is a sign of peace. Another change removed words accusing Israel of destroying Palestinians' heritage and stealing art works. The textbook also contained a map that did not include the word Israel. 6In July, Israeli officials wanted to take away the licenses of six schools. The officials said they had given the schools one year to use an approved version of the Palestinian Authority's curriculum. 7A city official said Israelis offered the schools a choice of using the Israeli curriculum, but Palestinians disagree. 8A 2016 report by the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs commented on the issue. It said Israeli officials have used financial incentives to pressure East Jerusalem schools to teach the Israeli curriculum. 9Israel captured East Jerusalem in 1967 and later annexed it. The move was not internationally recognized. 10It is estimated that Palestinians make up 38 percent of Jerusalem's population. Five percent of them are Israeli citizens. Palestinians consider East Jerusalem the capital of a future Palestinian state that would include the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. 11Parents and teachers have mostly blocked attempts to use Israeli-approved teaching materials in East Jerusalem. That part of the city began using a Palestinian curriculum in the 1990s. 12Reuters reports that a city official said 15 percent of East Jerusalem's student population is taught the Israeli curriculum. He said 10 years ago, it was three percent. 13Tareq Akash is a parent who worries about that increase. He fears people may no longer remember the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in the 1948 war that led to the creation of Israel. 14"We will not allow the brainwashing of our children," he said at last Monday's demonstration. 15I'm Andrew Smith. 16Roleen Tafakji, Sinan Abu Mayzer, and Henriette Chakar wrote this story for Reuters. Andrew Smith adapted it for VOA Learning English. 17______________________________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19censor -v. to examine books, movies and other media in an effort to remove things that are considered wrong or unacceptable 20heritage -n. the history and culture of a family, community, or country 21slogan -n. a short phrase, usually easy to remember, used by political parties or other organizations or in advertisements 22checkpoint -n. a location where police or military forces control or limit the movement of people from one area to another 23key -n. a device used to open a lock 24license -n. an official document that gives the holder permission to do, use or have something 25curriculum -n. the subjects and material taught in schools 26incentive -n. something that is used to increase the motivation to do something, often as a reward 27annex -v. to add an area to a country; to take control of another territory 28displacement -n. the movement or removal of things or persons from one place to another 29brainwashing -n. to cause someone to believe something by using methods that make the person unable to think normally 30_______________________________________________________________________ 31We want to hear from you. 32We have a new comment system. Here is how it works: 33Each time you return to comment on the Learning English site, you can use your account and see your comments and replies to them. Our comment policy is here.