4.5 mln students begin new school year in Syria

4.5 mln students begin new school year in Syria
Mon Sep 16, 2013 11:18:12

More than 4.5 million Syrian students have started the new school year of 2013-2014 amid a bloody insurgency led by extremist militants who have shown no mercy on people trapped in the foreign-backed war in Syria.

The recent terrorist attacks on hundreds of schools didn't prevent the Ministry of Education from providing educational requirements to over 18,000 schools across Syria and preparing them to receive children and youths intent on pursuing their education, a report in the official SANA news agency said.

Education Minister Hazwan al-Waz said that providing educational supplies, from textbooks to teaching aids to qualified teaching staff, was among the government's priorities since the end of the 2012-2013 school year.

Touring a number of schools in Qudsaya area in Damascus Countryside with other officials to inspect their readiness, al-Waz said that the smooth start of the new school year was made possible by the commitment shown by over 300,000 teachers who began preparations one week ago.

Concerns were highly on the rise among Syrian families, especially in the capital, following US threats to bomb the country over conflicting reports of a chemical attack which Washington rushed to blame on the Syrian government.

US military plans were canceled with Russia’s mediation that sought to ease the tensions by putting Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons under international control.

The offer was widely welcomed both in Syria and other countries that were concerned by US military ambitions and its regional consequences.

Syria and Russia have provided the United Nations with evidence showing that the August 21 chemical attack was a false-flag operation led by anti-Syria militants to open the way for direct US military involvement.

The US has been giving military support to anti-Syria militants through CIA operatives near Syria borders, but the White House had threatened that it would enter the war if a chemical attack was carried out by the Syrian army.

Washington has remained silent on whether it would intervene to help Syrian people and army if the militants were responsible for the attack.

SHI/SHI

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