Conflict Leaves 70 Schools Closed in Jawzjan

The ongoing violence has resulted in closure of 70 schools in northern Jawzjan province, depriving 30,000 students of education, a member of parliament representing the province said Tuesday.

“More than 70 schools have been closed and 30,000 students were deprived of education and even their families have been displaced to secure provinces,” Fahima Sadat, member of the parliament’s committee for religious, cultural, education and higher education affairs said.

According to MP Sadat, these schools have been closed in Qush Tepa and Darzab districts of the province.

Mohammad Radmanish, deputy spokesman for the Afghan ministry of defense confirms military use of schools by the Taliban and Daesh insurgent groups in the areas under their control.

“Our military units are conducting operations in all those areas where Taliban controls the schools,” Radmanish said. “Once we cleared those areas we are handing over the schools to the ministry of education.”

Reports suggest that nearly one thousand schools are closed across the country due to insecurity, but the ministry of education denies to make a comment about the statistics.

Based on the figures, Kunduz, Takhar, Baghlan, Jawzjan, and Faryab are among the provinces where a large number of schools are closed and thousands of students are deprived of education.