A 14-year-old Palestinian boy, Aws al-Naasan, was shot dead by an Israeli reservist outside his school in the occupied West Bank, marking the latest in a wave of attacks on education across the territory. The incident occurred on 21 April at the Mughayyir boys’ secondary school, where Aws was a ninth-grade student.
The Attack
Footage from inside the school shows terrified children and teachers crouching in stairwells as shots rang out. The reservist, wearing partial military uniform, fired from a hillside above. Aws collapsed instantly, bleeding heavily. Friends carried his limp body out of the line of fire, leaving a trail of blood along the school wall. Moments later, the same gunman killed Jihad Abu Naim, 36, the brother of an English teacher, whose wife is heavily pregnant with their first child.
Broader Context
The killings occurred amid a surge of Israeli settler violence in the West Bank, with schools and students increasingly targeted. In the same day, settlers demolished a British- and European-funded school in Hammamat al-Maleh, using bulldozers to raze classrooms and playgrounds. In the south Hebron Hills, settlers placed razor-wire across the road to a school, blocking students from attending. The French government has demanded compensation for the destroyed school.
Impact on Education
Education across occupied Palestine is under attack. In Gaza, over 600,000 school-age children have been without formal education for nearly three years, with Israeli attacks killing at least 792 teachers and 18,639 students, according to the UN. In the West Bank, a climate of near-total impunity prevails. Unicef spokesperson James Elder stated that these attacks are not isolated and have lasting psychological effects on children.
Community Response
After the killings, classes in Mughayyir were suspended for a week as parents feared for their children’s safety. Aws’s father had been killed by a settler in 2019, and teachers had tried to protect the young boy. His grandfather described him as a respectful child who wanted a normal life. The rights group B’Tselem said the shooting fits a consistent pattern of ethnic cleansing campaigns by Israeli soldiers and settlers. The Israeli military claimed the reservist opened fire after stones were thrown at his vehicle, but video footage contradicts this, showing the shooter hundreds of metres from the nearest road.
