The Palestinian people live a life of contradictions- joy and sadness, life and death, construction and demolition. Despite the continued Israeli incursions into the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and now, southern , the residents of Qalqilia have something to celebrate about. The results from the Tawjihi exams, a series of exams taken by Palestinian secondary school students, are in and as it turns out, Qalqilia’s students have done quite well.
The town of
Yasser Hamad Mufti of the Qalqilia municipality told PNN in a special interview: “In the light of the current crisis, the Palestinian people deserve a reason to celebrate. In the light of Israeli war crimes and an impending humanitarian catastrophe, the people deserve to be joyous over the success of our young people.”
Qalqilia high school student Tariq Zaid ranked in the 85th percentile of Palestinian high school students. He told PNN: “My parents were delighted to hear this news. With the arrest of many officials from Qalqilia, it is hard to understand the meaning of joy, but I am proud of my success and happy to bring positive news to the family.”
Another student from Qalqilia, Mahmoud Zaki Abu Amer, ranked in the 98th percentile, placing him second in the province. Amer told PNN: “I still feel sorrow over joy. While watching on the television the murder of Palestinian women and children by Israeli forces, it is difficult to exhibit any emotion other than sorrow.”
While the students of Qalqilia have brought the town great pride with their exam results, not all students were able to take the exams. According to the Office of the Directorate of Education, three high school students were arrested by Israeli forces before having the opportunity to take their exams.
