Syria teachers begin strike in Idlib calling for monthly wages

Syrian teachers began a strike on Monday in the northwestern, rebel-held province of  Idlib.

The striking teachers will go back to work once their salary demands are met, The New Arab's Arabic sister service, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, reported.

Secondary school mathematics teacher Abdul-Hamid Al-Youssef told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed "around 80 teachers announced they would stop teaching until further notice".

This was "in protest against the Salvation Government, which promised them monthly salaries in return for the services they provide to pupils".

Al-Youssef said the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) has so far failed to live up to its commitments. The SSG is affiliated with extremist Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham.

The strike comes after a protest organised by teachers on Saturday in government schools in Idlib, Al-Youssef said.

They carried placards expressing their refusal to enter their classrooms until their monthly wages are secured by the government or a humanitarian organisation working in the area, he added.

The strike impacts over 2,000 secondary pupils studying literature and science streams, according to Mohammed Salloum, who teaches Arabic language to students in the third grade of secondary school.

Idlib's education sector suffers greatly as international donors have stopped providing support and given HTS's control over educational institutions.

There are more than 5,000 volunteer teachers in Idlib who do not receive wages for their services, which has caused most of them to leave their jobs for other professions.