Tel Aviv University (TAU) recently awarded scholarships to 850 students who took part in Israel’s military attack on the Gaza Strip last summer. The “President’s Scholarship for Service in Operation Protective Edge”, up to NIS 2,000 per student, was awarded as tuition credit to the winners.
Already during the attack, which killed some 2,200 Palestinians and wounded over 10,800, Tel Aviv University President Joseph Klafter announced that such scholarships would be made available through a dedicated fundraising campaign.
At the height of the attack, TAU posted on its English-language website that “President Prof. Klafter expressed his deep appreciation for those students who have left their studies to serve their country, noting that the purpose of the scholarships is to help them catch up on class time they are missing so as to not jeopardize the completion of their degrees and research.”
Klafter was further quoted that “many TAU students and graduates have served in all of Israel’s wars and military operations, including in the current conflict, in roles throughout the various levels of command. Moreover, many of our researchers have won the Israel Defense Prize for their activities in the service of the State.”
Students doing a regular BA or MA programme at the university, who were students during the 2013-2014 academic year and served for at least seven days through an emergency military call-up during the attack, and who are continuing their studies in the 2014-2015 academic year, were eligible for the scholarship.