Posted on 02/12/25
| News Source: Times of Israel
Schools in Sderot will resume operations on March 3, the Education Ministry announced on Monday, a week after the southern city’s mayor joined his local counterparts in a protest demanding official confirmation from the government that residents who were evacuated from their homes due to the war in Gaza can safely go home.
The city of approximately 30,000 has been largely evacuated for over four months, due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, with residents living in hotels or other temporary conditions elsewhere in the country, mostly in Eilat.
The decision was made in conjunction with the Sderot municipality and with the approval of the Home Front Command, the ministry said in a statement. Residents who do not wish to return can remain outside the city until July with state support, the statement added.
For families who have already returned to the city, some kindergartens and classes for 1st- to 3rd-graders will begin operation on February 18, and limited special education and youth programming was set to begin on February 20.
The education systems set up for evacuated Sderot residents in other areas will be shut down on February 19, the notice said, explaining that staff resources were not sufficient to cover the operation of two systems simultaneously.