The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Sunday postponed board exams scheduled for Monday for students in the Middle East in the wake of the escalating conflict after the This will apply to schools in Iran, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
In a circular issued to principals of -affiliated schools in these countries, Controller of Examinations Sanyam Bhardwaj wrote that examinations scheduled for Monday, March 2, for both Class 10 and Class 12, are postponed. New dates will be announced later, it added.
The Board will review the situation on Tuesday, March 3, and take appropriate decisions regarding examinations scheduled from March 5 onwards, the circular added, advising students to stay in touch with their schools for updates and to follow official announcements carefully.
There is a Kendriya Vidyalaya in Iran’s capital Tehran, 22 CBSE-affiliated schools in Kuwait, 20 in Qatar, 41 in Saudi Arabia, eight in Bahrain, and 110 in the UAE, as per the CBSE schools directory. for classes 10 and 12 began in February.
Earlier, a , falsely claiming the cancellation of Class 10 and Class 12 board examinations for the 2025-26 academic year in the Middle East region. It claimed that the remaining language papers for Classes 10 and 12 had been cancelled at Middle East examination centres, citing “extraordinary global circumstances and prevailing war conditions”. The CBSE then clarified that the circular was fake and said an official update on the exams would follow later.
The US joined Israel in attacking Iran Saturday, causing remarkable destruction and killing over 201, including the country’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran has responded to the Israel-US attack with missile and projectile fire targeting Israeli territory. The Islamic Republic also launched attacks on Washington’s regional allies – UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar – all of which house US military bases. According to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report in 2024, there are eight persistent bases and 11 other military sites belonging to the US in the Middle East.
