A group of Jewish settlers attempted to raid two Palestinian elementary schools, on Tuesday afternoon, in the Tuqu village, southeast of the southern occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem.

Locals told Ma’an that heavily armed Israeli forces escorted a group of Jewish settlers, who were gathered holding Israeli flags near the two mixed elementary schools, attempted to break in.

A group of Israeli settlers attempted to raid two Palestinian elementary schools in the Tuqu village, southeast of the southern occupied West Bank district of Bethlehem. pic.twitter.com/feLlcXz6mY — Palestine Live (@pallive_en) March 26, 2019

Sources mentioned that teachers and school staff prevented Israeli settlers from entering the premises and closed the main gates.

The attack caused panic among the students, forcing the two schools to dismiss them early, in fear that the Israeli settlers would become violent.

No injuries were reported.

#Breaking: Israeli settlers broke into a school in the town of Tuqu, in #Bethlehem, on Tuesday, March 26, 2019, while they abused students and teachers in an extremist manner. — Palestine News Today ?? (@palestinow_) March 26, 2019

It is noteworthy that the Palestinian Ministry of Education released its annual report for 2017 documenting the Israeli government’s violations against Palestinian education, saying that 80,279 Palestinian children and 4,929 teachers and staff were “attacked” by Jewish settlers or soldiers.

According to the report, nine students were killed, while 603 students and 55 teachers and school employees sustained wounds during Israeli raids into schools or by being run over by Israeli military jeeps, while dozens of students suffered from suffocation due to inhaling tear-gas fired by Israeli forces against them.

(Ma’an, PC, Social Media)