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SCHOOL PROBE

School investigated after asking pupils ‘is it fair for Hamas to attack’ Israel – leaving parents furious

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has slammed the 'extremism'

A SCHOOL is being investigated after asking pupils whether Hamas’s murderous attack on Israel was “fair”.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said she was horrified to see classroom material attempting to justify the October 7 attacks.

British Secretary of State for Education Gillian Keegan gestures at Britain's Conservative Party's annual conference in Manchester, Britain, October 2, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville
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Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has slammed the slides - launching an urgent probeCredit: Reuters

The offending school slides have been shared on Mumsnet after youngsters discussed the Middle East crisis.

Pupils were asked if it was “fair for Hamas to attack” and then were called to give their opinions on the conflict.

The material — said to be from a secondary school that was not named — sparked uproar earlier tonight.

Ms Keegan said: “I’m horrified to see this.

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“Hamas are terrorists. Their actions are indefensible and anyone encouraging support for them should feel the full force of the law.

“Extremism has no place in education and I have launched an urgent review.”

The Mumsnet user who shared the material said their child was shown 11 slides on Israel taking land and Palestinian suffering.

The parent who raised the alarm through the parenting website said the material built up a very “one-sided” picture of the conflict.

They added: “By contrast, there is one line on the Holocaust and two lines on the October 7 attacks.”

Claiming to have demanded a meeting with the head, they said: “To me, this is inviting students to justify terrorism.”

Ms Keegan has previously been dragged into issues surrounding the conflict after pupils missed lessons to join protests backing a ceasefire.

She said schools should treat such classroom absences “with the utmost seriousness”.

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