An 18-year-old student from Gaza has topped the science stream in the Palestinian national secondary school examinations, overcoming repeated displacement, the loss of her father and the destruction caused by the war.
Saba Rabah achieved a score of 99.9%, ranking first nationwide in the Tawjihi examinations, which were held for the first time in Gaza since the conflict began in October 2023.
Speaking to AFP from Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, Rabah said she had been forced to flee with her family just days before her final examinations after a house opposite their temporary shelter was bombed.
The latest displacement came after months of hardship that had already claimed her father’s life, destroyed the family’s home and forced them to move repeatedly during the conflict.
“I achieved a score of 99.9 percent, ranking first in the nation in the science stream,” Rabah said as relatives and neighbours gathered to celebrate her achievement.
The Tawjihi examinations were held in June across Gaza, the occupied West Bank, Egypt and several other countries with Palestinian communities, marking the first time the exams had been conducted simultaneously in three years.
The war has severely disrupted education in Gaza, with the majority of schools and educational facilities damaged or destroyed by airstrikes and shelling, leaving tens of thousands of children without regular access to formal education.