See Pictures: Al-Azhar University In Gaza, Before And After Israeli Attack
The pictures of Gaza’s Al-Azhar University, detailing the before and after glance of the Israeli attacks on the organization, went viral on X (formerly Twitter) recently. The images were shared by a London-based Palestinian journalist named Ahmed Alnaouq, who was an alumnus of the institution. “Alazhar University in Gaza, where I did my first degree in English Literature, before and after the barbaric Israeli onslaught on Gaza”, wrote Mr Alnaouq on X while sharing the pictures.
Al-Azhar University-Gaza (AUG) was a Palestinian, public, non-profit, and independent higher education institution, which was established in 1991 by a presidential decree issued by the late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat. Mr Alnaouq did his Bachelor’s in English Literature in AUG and now felt devastated by the present condition of the organisation.
Alazhar University in Gaza, where I did my first degree in English Literature, before and after the barbaric Israeli onslaught on Gaza. pic.twitter.com/hhF3jXCWSz
— Ahmed Alnaouq (@AlnaouqA) December 4, 2023
As reported by the Guardian on October 30, the Israeli Defence Forces already accepted that they had attacked the area of Al-Azhar University from where it said an anti-tank missile was about to be launched. So far at least eleven universities in Gaza were bombed and suspended the educational processes of nineteen education organizations, affecting more than 88,000 students.
Ahmed Alnaouq took the pictures to X on Monday. He is the founder of We Are Not Numbers, a youth-led Palestinian nonprofit project in the Gaza Strip. He has a Master’s degree in international journalism from Leeds University, and is also the cofounder of Across the Wall, a media project that tells stories from Gaza in Hebrew, and serves as advocacy and outreach officer for the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor. Mr Ahmed’s writings have been published by the Gulf News, New Arab and other websites.
As reported by the French newspaper Le Monde, Ahmed Alnaouq lost over 21 family members in Gaza amid the ongoing Israel-Palestinian war. According to the recent reports, the Israeli military called for more evacuations in southern Gaza as the force widened its offensive aimed at eliminating the territory’s Hamas rulers. Since October 7, the war displaced almost three-fourth of Gaza’s 2.3 million population and killed almost 16,000 Palestinians in the Israeli offensives. At least 41,000 remain wounded and around 70% of the dead were women and children.
