School canceled as Nahariya, Shlomi brace for more rockets

Decision to be made after weekend on whether to reopen schools after towns hit by rockets from Lebanon.

By ABE SELIG
no school 298.88 AJ (photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
no school 298.88 AJ
(photo credit: Ariel Jerozolimski)
A decision will be made Saturday night on whether to reopen schools in Nahariya and Shlomi next week, after the towns were hit by rockets from Lebanon early Thursday morning. School was canceled in the two towns on Thursday, but classes were held in the rest of the Galilee, albeit under high alert. "The heads of the local authorities made the decision to call off classes this morning in light of the rocket fire," said David Gorali, the Education Ministry's spokesman for the North. "And they remained closed all day. Tomorrow is Friday and there will be no classes, but we'll obviously be paying attention to how events unfold over the weekend, and the decision to keep schools closed along with possibility of closing schools in other parts of the Galilee will be evaluated at a meeting on Saturday night." The Home Front Command did not order any schools closed in the North on Thursday, but did instruct residents in the towns that were hit to remain in fortified structures or bomb shelters, while people in the rest of the Western Galilee were told to remain close to a bomb shelter or fortified structure. Meanwhile, the rocket fire in the South has kept schools closed for up to two weeks in some places. Schools in the immediate rocket range - Sderot and the Gaza-area communities - have been closed since Operation Cast Lead began 13 days ago, and in other cities, such as Beersheba, classes have been canceled for over a week. While the Education Ministry has initiated programs to help children study from home, or even from bomb shelters, an estimated 180,000 pupils in the South are away from class, with no end in sight. A spokeswoman for the ministry in the South told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday that while the current scenario was expected to continue, there was talk of returning older pupils to class sometime next week, in schools with fortified rooms and shelters. "It is being discussed," she said. "Part of it is that the older pupils can get to the shelters more easily, but we work alongside the Home Front Command, and they will give their weekly briefing on Saturday. We plan on adhering to their recommendations." Therefore, she explained, classes were expected to remain canceled in all schools and universities with 40 km. of Gaza until further notice.