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Islamic University of Gaza

Coordinates: 31°30′47.23″N 34°26′25.64″E / 31.5131194°N 34.4404556°E / 31.5131194; 34.4404556
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Islamic University of Gaza
الجامعة الإسلامية غزة
Luhaidan Building
TypePublic
Established1978; 47 years ago (1978)
Academic staff
307
Students17,874[1]
Undergraduates16,212
Postgraduates1,662
Location,
Colors   White and green
Websitewww.iugaza.edu.ps

The Islamic University of Gaza (Arabic: الجامعة الإسلامية بغزة), also known as IUG and IU Gaza, is an independent Palestinian university established in 1978 in Gaza City.[2] It was the first higher education institution to be established in the Gaza Strip.[2] The university has 11 faculties capable of awarding BA, BSc, MA, MSc, MD, PhD, diplomas and higher diplomas,[2][3] in addition to 20 research centers and institutes and the affiliated Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital.[2][4]

The Islamic University suffered damage in air strikes during the 2008–2009 Gaza war, the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, and the Israel–Hamas war.[5][6] In December 2023, Professor Sufyan Tayeh, the university's president and a prominent scientist, was killed along with his family in an Israeli air strike on Jabalia refugee camp.[7][8]

History

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Founding

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A copy of IUG foundation document, IUG museum (2023)

No universities or higher education institutions existed in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip until 1972.[9][10] Before then, Palestinian high school graduates sought higher education abroad, mostly in Egyptian and Jordanian universities. However, travel restrictions after the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967, economic problems, and quotas on the admission of Palestinian students to Arab universities changed this situation.[11] Initiatives by local elders and community leaders were set in motion to establish higher education institutions, often on the grounds of existing schools and colleges.[11]

Sheikh Mohammad Awwad, then head of the Gaza Chapter of the Azhari Institute, led the Islamic University's founding committee. On 12 April 1978, the committee announced the opening of three faculties: Sharia, Usool-Deen, and Arabic Language (which later evolved into the Faculty of Arts).[12] The university was inaugurated in November 1978 as an independent, nonprofit, gender-segregated university. It was the first higher education institution in the Gaza Strip.[13] The Faculty of Education was founded in 1980 and the Faculties of Commerce and Arts, the following year. The Faculties of Nursing and Engineering were founded in 1993. In 2005, the Faculty of Information Technology was founded, followed by the Faculty of Medicine in 2006.[12]

Chairmen of the IUG Board of Trustees
Name Service Years
Mohammad Awwad 1978-1994
Jamal Al-Khoudari 1994-2014
Nasr al-Din Al-Muzaini 2014-2022
Mohammad Al-Aklouk 2022 - To date

The establishment of the Faculty of Nursing, was held up until 1993 and it took time to obtain building permits. The academic freedom of the university was restricted and staff movement was limited by Military Order 854. The university was granted a temporary license that required annual renewal, and it was denied tax exemptions.[11][14]

February 2007 fighting between Fatah and Hamas

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In February 2007, during the height of fighting between Hamas and Fatah, the dominating party in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), the Palestinian Authority (PA) Presidential Guards and Fatah militiamen stormed the Islamic University campus using mortars and rocket-propelled grenades, setting the library building and parts of the computer center and science building on fire.[15][16][17]

December 2008 bombing

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Just after midnight on 28/29 December 2008 local time, the university was bombed in six air strikes by the Israeli Air Force during the 2008 Gaza War. An Israeli army spokeswoman told The Chronicle of Higher Education that university facilities were being used by Hamas to develop and store weapons including Qassam rockets used to target Israeli civilians. Hamas denied the Israeli allegation.[18][19]

Several international academic institutions have proceeded to express their commitment to support IUG and other universities in Gaza. The International Association of Universities, of which IUG is a member, has claimed to have written to the university to express its deep concern over the effects of the war, and to be ready to mobilize its member universities in support of the rebuilding efforts of the university. Similarly, Prof. Espen Bjertness of the University of Oslo and member of the Steering Committee of PEACE, stressed that “the sad situation for all academics caused by the bombing of our member university, Islamic University, Gaza and of the Gaza Community Mental Health Program calls for appropriate action”.[20]

2014 and 2023 conflicts

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The university was bombed again during the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict, where on August 2, an Israeli airstrike targeted the administration building, causing severe damage to the building and to nearby buildings.[21] The Israeli army claimed it targeted a "weapon development" centre in the university, which the university denied.[5][21]

The university's Gaza City campus was bombed and its buildings destroyed on the night of 10 October 2023 during the opening week of the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.[22][23] Israeli forces alleged that the university had served as a "training institution for the development and production of weapons."[24] The neighboring Al-Azhar University campus was also bombed during the same night.[22]

Relationship with Hamas

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According to the Chronicle of Higher Education, Islamic University was co-founded by one of the future founders of Hamas, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, in 1978.[25] In June 1996, then-Congressman Chuck Schumer argued that the Islamic University of Gaza was "known as a Hamas bastion."[26]

Samar Sabih, considered Hamas's first female bombmaker, was recruited while studying at IUG in 2003, according to Israeli security officials.[27]

In 2006, Jameela El Shanty, a professor at the university, said that "Hamas built this institution. The university presents the philosophy of Hamas. If you want to know what Hamas is, you can know it from the university."[28]

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy wrote in a piece on USAID funding of organisations with possible links to terrorism that connections exist between the university and Hamas.[29] The U.S. Office of the Inspector General said in a 2007 audit of U.S. assistance to Palestinian universities that the IUG has been vetted eight times between 2002 and 2007, concluding that "the vetting did not reveal information that would preclude the awards from proceeding".[30]

Steven Erlanger, former Jerusalem bureau chief of the New York Times, described the IUG as "one of the prime means for Hamas to convert Palestinians to its Islamist cause," in a 2007 piece about Palestinian infighting and Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip.[31] This report was criticised by political economist Sara Roy of Harvard University, who stated that "there can be no question that Hamas works within the framework of Islamic institutions in the Gaza Strip, and that there are certain direct links between Hamas and many of the social and economic institutions (in the strip). ... However, it is far more questionable whether an automatic and inevitable link exists between Hamas and Islamic social and economic institutions, whether those links are inherently subversive, or whether such institutions promote radicalism and violence as is commonly assumed." Roy also wrote: "logic maintains, institutional clients become automatically linked to Hamas and constitute a base of support for political Islam. As a result, Islamic social institutions become recruiting centers for the Hamas's military wing. There is however, little hard evidence to support any of these allegations."[32]

In 2010, journalist Thanassis Cambanis wrote in the Boston Globe that the university was "the brain trust and the engine room of Hamas".[33]

In October 2023, the Israeli military accused Hamas of turning the university "into a training camp for weapons development and military intelligence."[34]

Campus

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The main campus is located in Gaza City, with branch campuses in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip and Al Zahra in the middle of Gaza Strip. The total area of the three campuses is 325,817 square meters (32.5817 hectares; 80.511 acres). The Al Zahra campus is home to the Faculty of Medicine and the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital.[35][10]

Map

Rankings

[edit]
IUG Rankings[10]
Category Rank Year Ranking
Global Impact Rankings 601–800th 2023 Times Higher Education
Arab University Impact Rankings 91-100th 2023 Times Higher Education
Overall percentile 75th 2023 Scimago Institutions Rankings
Research percentile 57th 2023 Scimago Institutions Rankings
Innovation percentile 87th 2023 Scimago Institutions Rankings
Societal percentile 60th 2023 Scimago Institutions Rankings

Donors

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Donors to the university include Arab Student Aid International, United Palestinian Appeal, Islamic Relief, the British Council, the World Bank, USAID,[30] the Islamic Development Bank and Human Appeal International.[citation needed]

Notable faculty

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Notable alumni

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "About IUG". The Islamic University Gaza. Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 12 September 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d "Islamic University of Gaza". Times Higher Education (THE). 12 November 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  3. ^ "About IUG – الجامعة الإسلامية بغزة". Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  4. ^ "Islamic University Takes Up the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital – الجامعة الإسلامية بغزة". Retrieved 2 October 2022.
  5. ^ a b "Israel strikes university in Gaza City". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  6. ^ "Watch: Israel Strikes the Islamic University of Gaza". www.wsj.com. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  7. ^ a b "Israeli air strike in Gaza kills prominent scientist Sufyan Tayeh, Palestinian ministry says". Reuters. 3 December 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  8. ^ "Gaza university president killed in Israeli air strike". Times Higher Education (THE). 4 December 2023. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
  9. ^ Angrist, Joshua D. (1995). "The Economic Returns to Schooling in the West Bank and Gaza Strip". The American Economic Review. 85 (5): 1065–1087. ISSN 0002-8282. JSTOR 2950975.
  10. ^ a b c "Islamic University of Gaza". Times Higher Education (THE). 12 November 2021. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  11. ^ a b c "PIJ.ORG: Palestinian University Education under Occupation By Gabi Baramki". PIJ.ORG. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  12. ^ a b "لمحة تاريخية – الجامعة الإسلامية بغزة" (in Arabic). Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  13. ^ "Islamic University of Gaza". Top Universities. Retrieved 17 November 2022.
  14. ^ ASSAF, Said (1997). "Educational disruption and recovery in Palestine" (PDF). UNESCO International Bureau of Education. pp. 57–58.
  15. ^ "Chronological Review of Events/February 2007 - DPR review". Question of Palestine. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  16. ^ Myre, Greg (3 February 2007). "17 Die as Fatah-Hamas Warfare Spreads". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  17. ^ "Along the Lines of the Bloodiest Israeli Incursions: 29 Palestinians Killed and more than 200 Injured in Renewed Internal Clashes". Palestinian Centre for Human Rights. 4 February 2007. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  18. ^ "IRAN'S GAZA GOONS CAUGHT AT HELM OF BOMB FACTORY," by ANDY SOLTIS with Post Wire Services, New York Post, 2007-02-03 [1] Archived 2008-12-04 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ Jerusalem Post, 2008-12-29, IAF bombs Islamic University's R&D labs, By YAAKOV KATZ [2][permanent dead link]
  20. ^ "P.E.A.C.E. Programme". Archived from the original on 4 March 2012. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  21. ^ a b "Israeli Airstrikes Target Gaza's Islamic University". www.wsj.com. Retrieved 2 March 2023.
  22. ^ a b "Israel bombs Gaza university, alleging use by military". University World News. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  23. ^ a b c Silva, Chantal Da; Salam, Yasmine; Mulligan, Matthew; Britton, Bianca (4 April 2024). "Class destroyed: The rise and ruin of Gaza's revered universities". NBC News. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
  24. ^ "Islamic University of Gaza Targeted in Israeli Airstrike". Yahoo News. 11 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2023.
  25. ^ December 29, 2008, "Israeli Airstrikes in Gaza Destroy 2 University Buildings," Chronicle of Higher Education [3] Archived 2012-10-13 at the Wayback Machine
  26. ^ "Congressional Record, Volume 142 Issue 87". govinfo.gov. 13 June 1996.
  27. ^ Shaked, Ronny (27 October 2005). "Hamas' pregnant bomb maker". Ynet News. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  28. ^ "Is Gaza's Islamic University an Educational Institution Academics Should Be Defending?". History News Network.
  29. ^ August 24, 2007, "Better Late Than Never: Keeping USAID funds out of terrorist hands", Washington Institute for Near East Policy [4] Archived 2007-10-07 at the Wayback Machine
  30. ^ a b OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL (10 December 2007). "AUDIT OF USAID/WEST BANK AND GAZA'S ASSISTANCE TO AL-QUDS UNIVERSITY, THE ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY IN GAZA, AND AMERICAN NEAR EAST REFUGEE AID" (PDF). usaid.gov. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
  31. ^ "Gaza is hit with more Israeli airstrikes," by Steven Erlanger, New York Times, May 18, 2007 [5] Archived 2016-07-22 at the Wayback Machine
  32. ^ Sara Roy, Failing Peace, 2007, Pluto Press: London
  33. ^ Israel Denial; Anti-Zionism, Anti-Semitism, & the Faculty Campaign Against the Jewish State, 2019.
  34. ^ "Hamas Releases Fourth Hostage Group, Truce Deal Extended by Two Days". The Wall Street Journal. 27 November 2023.
  35. ^ "Islamic University of Gaza | Ranking & Review". www.4icu.org. Retrieved 1 December 2022.
  36. ^ "Recent Advances in Graphene Nanophotonics (Advanced Structured Materials #190) | mitpressbookstore". mitpressbookstore.mit.edu. 21 May 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
  37. ^ Tessler, Mark (24 March 2009). A History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Second Edition. Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-01346-0.
  38. ^ Weisner, Benjamin (22 July 1998). "Appeal Lost By Inmate Who Refuses To Testify". The New York Times. Retrieved 14 May 2019.
  39. ^ Mapping the Organizational Sources of the Global Delegitimization Campaign Against Israel in the UK
  40. ^ https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/hamas-leader-dies-in-air-strike-as-israeli-troops-gather-at-border-1.860065 [bare URL]
  41. ^ Whitaker, Brian (22 August 2003). "Pragmatist whose two-state solution cut no ice with Israel". The Guardian.
  42. ^ Toameh, Khaled Abu (8 August 2014). "Hamas Executes One of Its Leaders - Then Blames Israel". Gatestone Institute.
  43. ^ "Israeli forces battle Hamas in Gaza refugee camp as deal to free hostages appears close". PBS NewsHour. 21 November 2023.
  44. ^ https://ciaotest.cc.columbia.edu/pbei/winep/0017495/f_0017495_14978.pdf [bare URL PDF]
  45. ^ The Foreign Policy of Hamas; Ideology, Decision Making and Political Supremacy
  46. ^ Beaumont, Peter (14 November 2012). "Ahmed al-Jabari: the Hamas 'general' who kept out of the limelight". The Guardian.
  47. ^ "Female Palestine teacher wins Global Teacher Award 2020". Middle East Monitor. 7 November 2020. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  48. ^ "Yehya Ibrahim Sinwar - Ezzedeen Al-Qassam Brigades". 2 September 2016. Archived from the original on 2 September 2016. Retrieved 29 November 2023.
  49. ^ Burke, Jason (21 November 2023). "Yahya Sinwar: the man who may hold key to release of Gaza hostages". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  50. ^ McCarthy, Rory (20 June 2007). "Hamas ready for dialogue with Fatah". The Guardian.
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31°30′47.23″N 34°26′25.64″E / 31.5131194°N 34.4404556°E / 31.5131194; 34.4404556