In war-torn Gaza, children are approaching almost a year without having an education. The United Nations say the overwhelming majority of schools there have been damaged or destroyed. But for those Palestinian children who managed to get to Australia as refugees, their school life is back on track.
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00:00Moussa Ghariba's parents weren't sure they'd ever see their little boy play again.
00:14Like many in Gaza, Fadi and Dina just wanted to keep their child safe.
00:19Many nights I was crying, not being sure that I will have a morning.
00:25They fled in February after approval for tourist visas in Australia and finally being able
00:29to cross the rougher border into Egypt.
00:32Now Moussa has started school in Sydney after six months without an education.
00:36I like to play with my friends, I like math.
00:40What do you want to learn next?
00:47Learn how to plant things and now I'm learning that.
01:00Moussa's dream job changes almost weekly, now ambitious about his future.
01:04I want to be a policeman.
01:06He's really happy at school, he's making new friends, he loves his teacher.
01:12In Gaza, more than 45,000 other six-year-olds won't be able to start the new school year.
01:17The Palestinian Education Ministry says about 11,000 students have been killed
01:22and more than 17,700 injured since October 7, including this five-year-old boy
01:28who was found in shock when he was trapped under the rubble after an Israeli airstrike.
01:33That boy is still highly traumatised, he won't speak.
01:36So this child that was beautiful, speaking and singing and loving life is now here in Australia
01:44but is finding it very difficult to speak except to his mum.
01:48Now he's in kindergarten in Melbourne.
01:50He put on his Spiderman little bag and went to school and wanted to play
01:56and he just wanted to be like any other kid.
01:59This week his teacher finally heard his voice for the first time when he counted to five.
02:06Palestine Australia Relief and Action is providing settlement services to his family
02:11and the majority of the 1,300 Palestinians now in Australia.
02:15They need everything because they're arriving here with nothing and with massive amounts of trauma.
02:21Unlike previous conflicts, the federal government is yet to establish a dedicated humanitarian visa for Palestinians
02:28but have offered a small number of people with a pathway to a three-year humanitarian visa.
02:33The not-for-profit says the government needs to call for safe exits out of Gaza for those with Australian visas
02:39and ensure family reunification and a clearer pathway to permanency.
02:44They're just humans with a pulse and with hopes and dreams like all of us.
02:51We want him first of all to be safe, not worry of losing his life in a sudden.
02:58We want him to be free, we want him a better education, a better future.
03:04We don't want him to suffer.
03:06A hope they also share for other children like theirs.