George and Amal Clooney to help Syrian refugee children go to school

An estimated 200,000 refugee children living in Lebanon are not in school.

George and Amal Clooney plan to help 3,000 Syrian refugee children attend school in Lebanon by funding 7 public schools there, according to an AFP report.

The United Nations estimates that about 200,000 Syrian refugee children living in Lebanon are not in school. Over 500,000 Syrian children (and over one million Syrians in total) are registered as refugees in Lebanon.

Since the war in Syria began in 2011, an estimated 400,000 people have lost their lives. The United Nations estimates that there are over 5 million refugees who have fled the war.

The Hollywood couple’s foundation, The Clooney Foundation for Justice, announced that it will fund the Syrian children’s education through a $2.25 million partnership with Google and a $1 million technology grant from HP.

Working with UNICEF, the foundation will help seven public schools accommodate the refugee children.

“They have been victims of geography and circumstance, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t hope,” the Clooneys wrote in a statement. “Our goal with this initiative is to help provide Syrian refugee children with an education and put them on a path to be the future leaders their generation desperately needs.”