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A teacher at a school in central Israel’s Tzur Yigal exposed fifth-grade students to a graphic video from the October 7 massacre during a lesson. The footage included severed limbs, gunshot victims and the screams of the wounded. Some students panicked, with several breaking down in tears and later experiencing anxiety.
A school probe found that the teacher had intended to show a video about Magen David Adom’s (MDA) activities but mistakenly played a different video from the MDA depicting the October 7atrocities. She was unaware of the mistake as she had left the classroom after starting the video.
Parents reported their children were in shock and distress. "This is exactly what we’ve tried to shield them from for the past year and a half. The kids are severely traumatized," one mother said.
"This is a serious incident that occurred during an extracurricular lesson taught by an external instructor not employed by the ministry,” The Education Ministry said in a statement. “Once the incident became known, she was immediately dismissed from the school.”
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“The administration promptly informed parents and set up professional support, including a psychologist and school counselor. Students will participate in discussions with professionals and the incident is being closely monitored by the school inspector," the statement also said.
"During an extracurricular lesson, fifth-grade students were exposed to an MDA video containing disturbing visuals and sounds from October 7,” The Kokhav Ya'ir-Tzur Yigal local council said.
“The instructor was immediately dismissed and the contract with the company providing the extracurricular program was terminated. The council has made psychological support available for affected students. We deeply regret the incident and are committed to ensuring such events do not happen again."