World
Lebanese Schools Struggle to Reopen While Still Sheltering War Displaced
Schools across Lebanon are preparing to open for the new academic year on September 15, even as many continue to house people displaced by Israel's military campaign.
In the southern village of Froun, school principal Abbas Makki is readying his school for the return of students, even though the building has also served as a shelter for displaced residents. The village remains littered with rubble from Israeli air strikes, and local officials say most of Froun still lacks state-provided water and electricity.
"Our area has been devastated," Makki said, noting the school had reopened briefly after a US-brokered truce between Lebanon and Israel took effect in June. It is now set to reopen again after the summer break, but will continue offering shelter to those in need. "We will reopen the school for students, but will not abandon the displaced people," he said.
Israel's war on Lebanon escalated for a second time in two years this past March, two days after Israeli and US strikes killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese group, responded with attacks on Israel for the first time in over a year, prompting a heavy Israeli military response. Israeli forces re-entered southern Lebanon after largely withdrawing earlier in 2025, displacing more than one million people from the south, the Bekaa Valley, and Beirut's southern suburbs.
In April, direct US-mediated negotiations began between Israel and Lebanon, despite Hezbollah's preference for indirect talks. By late June, the two sides reached a framework agreement establishing "pilot zones" where Israeli troops would withdraw and the Lebanese Army would take over to disarm Hezbollah. Froun was among three villages included in this pilot program, even though residents say Israeli forces had never occupied the town.
Following the agreement, many residents returned to Froun only to find their homes reduced to rubble. Some, like Soujoud Ramadan, have since settled at the local school. Ramadan now runs a small market near the school entrance, selling snacks and household goods, since the town center's shops were destroyed. "We returned here after the ceasefire to a completely destroyed village," she said, "but I hope Froun will return like it was and even better."
Lebanon's public school year is scheduled to begin Tuesday, September 15, the same date a local official said the government hopes to restore water and electricity to Froun. While many displaced residents have since returned home or found other housing, renewed Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon have forced some back into displacement. On Monday, Israeli attacks killed 12 people, including two children, in Kfar Reman in the Nabatieh region. According to Lebanon's Ministry of Health, 4,381 people have been killed by Israeli forces since March 2, with hundreds of thousands still displaced nationwide.
Maysoun Chehab, senior education program specialist at UNESCO's Beirut office, said schools cannot simultaneously function as shelters and classrooms. "Where schools continue to accommodate displaced families, reopening will inevitably be delayed or classroom capacity reduced," she said, adding that any relocation of displaced families must include safe, dignified alternative housing.
On September 2, Lebanon's Education Minister Rima Karami said every student would have access to school for the 2026-27 academic year, with in-person classes prioritized wherever possible. She stressed that no displaced person sheltering in a school would be removed without an alternative provided. In the nearby town of Srifa, displaced residents were reportedly relocated from a public school to a private one, while in Bourj Qalaway, authorities plan to install 17 prefabricated classrooms at the site of a school destroyed in the conflict. In Froun, Makki said prefabricated housing would be provided to displaced residents so that classes could resume. "The important thing is that we will not mistreat the people, nor will we stop classes," he said.
Despite these efforts, experts warn the coming school year will pose severe challenges given the scale of destruction in southern Lebanon. Chehab said more than 340 schools have been damaged and 454 affected by conflict-related disruptions. "Lebanon is not facing a normal school reopening; it is trying to protect education amid continued hostilities, displacement, and extensive damage to schools," she said, noting that Lebanese students have faced disrupted school years for seven consecutive years.
"Education cannot wait for complete political or security stability," Chehab added. "Every effort must be made now to return children to safe learning, support their teachers, and restore a sense of normality and hope. Protecting education today means protecting Lebanon's human capital, social cohesion, and future."