Bader Slaih, a PhD holder from Bureij in central Gaza, has become a baker to feed his family and neighbors after repeated displacement during the war on the enclave. He holds a master’s and doctorate from Egypt and had planned to begin teaching before the conflict interrupted his career. A UNICEF report warns that more than 97% of Gaza’s schools are damaged or destroyed and 91.8% of education facilities need major reconstruction; local reports say all 12 universities are at least partly unusable. Slaih remains determined to teach again, saying he would even instruct students in a tent.
Gaza PhD Scholar Turns Baker to Feed Family and Community Amid War
Bader Slaih is pictured baking bread [Screengrab/Al Jazeera]
Bader Slaih, a Palestinian PhD holder from Bureij in central Gaza, has put his academic career on hold and taken up baking to feed his family and neighbors amid the ongoing war on the enclave.
Displaced several times during the fighting, Slaih built a makeshift brick oven to bake bread after he and his relatives found themselves cut off from regular supplies. Despite these hardships, he remains committed to returning to teaching when circumstances allow.
“The war was hard on everyone. We were tormented and humiliated,” Slaih told Al Jazeera. “Out of a dire need, we built a brick oven to make bread for our children. We had to bake to feed our children and others.”
From Scholar to Baker
Slaih earned a master’s degree and a doctorate in Egypt and returned to Gaza intending to begin a teaching career. After registering his academic qualifications with local universities, the outbreak of war interrupted those plans.
Slaih says he is determined to pursue his career [Screengrab/Al Jazeera]
He remained in Gaza when his wife and son left for medical reasons, staying behind to care for other family members while trying to provide for them through baking.
Education in Crisis
Gaza has long valued education, and before the current conflict its literacy rates were among the highest regionally. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the illiteracy rate among Palestinians aged 15 and older was 2.1 percent in 2023.
However, a UNICEF report released in November warned that Gaza's education system "stands on the brink of collapse," finding that more than 97 percent of schools were damaged or destroyed and that 91.8 percent of education facilities require full reconstruction or significant rehabilitation to become functional again. Local reports also indicate that all 12 of Gaza’s universities have been totally or partially destroyed and are currently unusable.
“I will serve as a teacher, even in a tent. It is my mission to teach Palestinian students, even if I must build a classroom, brick by brick,” Slaih said, expressing determination to resume his academic work when possible.
Despite the displacement and destruction around him, Slaih remains hopeful that he will soon return to the classroom and help rebuild Gaza’s educational life.
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