From April 3 – 5, 2021, Shoruq Debate Club (SDC) participated in the 5th International Schools Debate Tournament (ISDT) hosted by QatarDebate, which took place online via Zoom. A team of five girls (Yara Qaraqeh, Ghazal Salem, Catherine Hayek, Sadeel Issa, and Kinda Sharia) represented Palestine for the first time in this prominent event, which saw the participation of some of the best school debaters from more than 50 countries across the globe. The competition tackled a number of pressing global issues in our time, chosen by a special committee that also refereed the debate rounds.
Led by SDC’s debate trainers, Ramez Alhayek and Dalia Alayassa, the SDC team demonstrated a consistent rocky performance throughout the tournament and was also able to win their first-ever debate round in an international competition. The team members articulated well-rounded arguments and responded to the other competing teams with persuasive rebuttals surrounding diverse environmental, political, economic, and social topics. It is worth mentioning that this was the first time for SDC team members to participate in an official debate tournament; yet, they could put up a good and close fight!
We are extremely proud of our team members and wish them the best of luck in the upcoming tournament, especially that they are rapidly improving their debating skills!
