Gaza City
Hamas' flagship university in Gaza has a new diploma on offer - Hebrew, the official language of its arch-foe Israel.
Gaza's Hamas rulers say they want to produce qualified teachers as the government gradually introduces Hebrew studies in its high schools. The aim is simple: It wants Palestinians in Gaza to learn their enemy's language.
"As Jews are occupying our lands, we have to understand their language," said Education Ministry official Somayia Nakhala.
There are 19 students enrolled in the first one-year Hebrew diploma course offered at the Islamic University in Gaza City, a stronghold of Hamas, the Islamic militant group that has ruled Gaza since 2007. Hamas does not recognize Israel, is officially pledged to its destruction and has killed hundreds of Israelis in suicide bombings, rocket strikes and other attacks.
Plans to expandOfficials hope graduates will become Hebrew teachers. Hamas has already begun offering Hebrew studies as an elective to ninth-graders in 16 schools, and plans to expand the program to dozens of other schools in the coming months.
Israel occupied Gaza for 38 years after capturing it, along with the West Bank and east Jerusalem, in the 1967 Mideast war. Since withdrawing its settlers and troops from Gaza in 2005, Israel has fought two wars against Hamas and restricts access to the territory by air, land and sea.
The coastal strip still relies on Israeli-run crossings for most consumer goods, and Gaza patients must receive special permits to reach medical care in Israel or the West Bank.
Students need to "understand what's going on, like wars, medical treatment in Israel, in the West Bank," said the Education Ministry's Nakhala.
Many speak HebrewThere is no shortage of Hebrew speakers in Gaza, at least among older residents. For years, Gaza Palestinians entered Israel to work in restaurants, construction and other menial jobs. Thousands of others learned the language while held in Israeli prisons. In quieter times, many Israelis would come to Gaza to fix their cars, bargain hunt or eat at local restaurants.
But after the outbreak of the first Palestinian uprising in the late 1980s, Israelis stopped coming. After a second uprising erupted in 2000, Israel sharply restricted the entry of Gazans. Since Israel's pullout and the subsequent Hamas takeover, direct contact between the sides is virtually nonexistent.
Palestinian students in Gaza face unique challenges to learning Hebrew. Because of Israeli restrictions, few will ever practice the language with native speakers.
Contact discouragedContact with Israelis is frowned upon in Gaza, where it angers many residents who have lost loved ones or suffered injuries in fighting.
A small group of Gaza residents, mostly traders and medical officials, regularly enter Israel for business purposes. However, Hamas bristles at other contacts, and the government recently banned Gaza journalists from working for Israeli media. Some Gaza residents who communicate with Israeli friends on e-mail or Skype say they shy away from discussing those relationships with others.