February 5, 2026
Leaked documents obtained by Quds Network detail widespread revisions to Palestinian textbooks following EU-linked demands.
Key Takeaways
- Quds Network obtained official documents showing extensive revisions to the Palestinian school curriculum.
- The changes affected textbooks from first through tenth grade across multiple subjects.
- Revisions followed requests linked to the European Union and objections tied to Israel.
- National symbols, historical terms, and references to prisoners, refugees, and Jerusalem were removed or altered.
- Internal reports document more than 300 politically motivated curriculum changes.
- Some textbooks saw revisions exceeding 30 percent of their original content.
- The changes raise questions about external influence over Palestinian educational policy.
Documents Obtained by Quds Network
Leaked official documents and internal correspondence obtained by Quds News Network (QNN) reveal that the Palestinian Ministry of Education introduced sweeping revisions to the national school curriculum following external requests linked to the European Union and objections associated with Israel.
According to the documents, the revisions were implemented across dozens of textbooks, from first grade through tenth grade, and affected core subjects including Arabic language, national education, civic studies, and mathematics.
The material shows that the changes went far beyond isolated edits, instead amounting to systematic restructuring of educational content related to Palestinian history, identity, geography, and lived experience.
The documents include official letters, internal reports, and annotated textbook revisions, all of which were reviewed by QNN.
External Requests
Among the documents obtained is an official letter dated January 19, sent by Palestinian Minister of Education Amjad Barham to the Minister of Finance and Planning, Stephan Salameh. The letter references additional notes related to the Ministry of Education’s response to recent European Union requirements concerning the Palestinian curriculum.
According to the correspondence, these requirements were discussed during a meeting between Palestinian officials and EU representatives held later in the same month, on January 27. The notes outlined specific requested deletions and amendments, many of which were later confirmed by the ministry as having been implemented.
The documents indicate that the requested changes focused on removing or revising content deemed to have a national or political character.
Removal of National Symbols
The leaked material shows that some of the earliest changes targeted national symbols in lower-grade textbooks.
According to QNN, the European Union requested the removal of the Palestinian national anthem from the first-grade civic education book. The ministry confirmed that the anthem was subsequently deleted.
In second-grade textbooks, a lesson containing an illustration of a prison and an activity asking students to name Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails was removed. The ministry acknowledged that this content had been deleted in response to the request.
Maps depicting Palestine and identifying Jerusalem as its capital were also removed from several textbooks, following objections raised during consultations referenced in the documents.
Changes to Content on Jerusalem
The documents detail multiple revisions related to Jerusalem and other Palestinian cities.
In third-grade national education textbooks, the phrase “Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine” was altered to read “Jerusalem is the capital of the heavenly religions and the capital of Palestine.” Other references describing Jerusalem as a Palestinian city were replaced with language emphasizing its religious significance to Muslims and Christians.
References to the coastal city of Yafa (Jaffa) were removed or altered. In one lesson, the sentence “I am a Palestinian city” was deleted, and a question asking students where Yaffa is located was removed entirely.
In several exercises, the city of Yafa was replaced with other Palestinian cities, such as Hebron (Al-Khalil), following objections to identifying Yaffa as a Palestinian city.
Alterations Across Multiple Subjects
The revisions extended beyond civic education into other core subjects.
In a third-grade mathematics textbook, the phrase “building the annexation and expansion wall” was deleted. The Ministry of Education confirmed in its response that references to the wall had been removed.
In fourth-grade Arabic textbooks, an example containing the phrase “how ugly the occupation is” was removed. The word “mujahid” was replaced with “defender,” while “prisoner” was replaced with “the oppressed.” Questions encouraging students to write messages supporting Palestinians in Jerusalem were deleted.
In several textbooks, the term “Zionist” was removed wherever it appeared.
Hundreds of Revisions
An internal report prepared by the Palestinian National Curriculum Center, obtained by QNN, provides a quantitative overview of the scope of the changes.
According to the report, approximately 300 revisions were introduced across textbooks from first through tenth grade for what the report describes as political reasons.
The report details the percentage of content revised in each grade level, including:
- Fifth-grade textbooks were revised by more than 30 percent.
- Seventh-grade textbooks were revised by over 25 percent.
- Significant revisions across Arabic language textbooks for grades six through ten.
- In some cases, entire lessons were removed and replaced with unrelated material.
Rewriting of Historical Content
The documents show that lessons dealing with Palestinian history, displacement, and refugeehood were among those most heavily altered.
Terms such as “forced displacement” were replaced with “migration,” while statements describing refugeehood as an injustice were rewritten to frame it as a broader regional issue.
References to historic Palestinian cities and villages — including Safad, Ramla, Majdal, and Deir Yassin — were altered to emphasize alternative historical narratives or removed altogether.
Poems, songs, and literary texts referencing return, resistance, exile, and national memory were deleted across multiple grade levels.
Early Grades Most Affected
According to the documents reviewed by QNN, early-grade textbooks were particularly impacted.
In first-grade Arabic textbooks, references to the State of Palestine, national symbols, and patriotic songs were removed. Images of the Palestinian flag were replaced, and lessons about the homeland were substituted with neutral themes.
In second- and third-grade materials, lessons on freedom, homeland, and Palestinian cities were replaced with content emphasizing coexistence, friendship, and abstract peace concepts, without reference to occupation or historical context.
Exercises depicting Israeli military presence or occupation-related imagery were removed and replaced with neutral illustrations.
Questions Over Educational Policy
The documents indicate that the curriculum revisions were implemented across multiple subjects and grade levels, reshaping how Palestinian students encounter history, geography, and national identity in the classroom.
While the Ministry of Education acknowledged implementing the changes outlined in the correspondence, neither the ministry nor the European Union has publicly released a comprehensive explanation addressing the full scope of the revisions documented.
The leaked material raises ongoing questions about the extent of external influence over Palestinian educational content and the mechanisms governing curriculum approval and donor oversight.
(Qunds News Network)
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