The following article originally appeared on A World at School鈥檚 .听

High-level guests included聽聽Gordon Brown, Lebanese education minister Elias Bou Saab and British Ambassador to Lebanon Tom Fletcher. They witnessed performances, campaign videos and youth-led entertainment at the American University of Beirut, followed by a mass signing of the聽.

It calls on world leaders to keep their promise to get every child into school without fear of danger or discrimination and has gathered more than 5.5 million signatures so far.

Other rallies have been held in New York, London, Nairobi, Kinshasa and Monrovia.

The event was hosted by Salyne El Samarany, CEO of聽聽and a 2014 UN Youth Courage Award winner. She told the audience about the work of A World at School and said: 鈥淲e must ensure every child鈥檚 basic right to go to school is realised.鈥�

Salyne El Samarany, CEO of , tells youth event in Beirut every child must be in school

鈥� A World at School (@aworldatschool)

UK Ambassador Mr Fletcher said: 鈥淵ou have the power. You have two amazing things.鈥� Holding up a smartphone, he continued: 鈥淵ou have the means to connect with people all over the world and you also have the education which gives you the means to change the world. Use the power that you have.鈥�

Education minister Mr Bou Saab held up an #UpForSchool T-shirt and told the audience: 鈥淵ou can win wars through education.鈥� He added: 鈥淲e are committed to do our best to achieve what the UN signed for in 2000. With your help we are getting there. With the funding from the international community we are able to make progress.鈥�

Education minister Elias Bou Saab with an #UpForSchool T-shirt

Education envoy Mr Brown talked about the double-shift system being used in Lebanese schools, which allows both Lebanese and Syrian refugee children to be taught. He said 鈥� thanks to the tireless efforts of Mr Bou Saab and the support of the international community 鈥� that 100,000 Syrian children were already being taught this way. Eventually, 300,000 girls and boys will have the right to free education through the double-shift system. Mr Brown added: 鈥淚 met a boy this morning and I asked him: 鈥榃hat do you want to be?鈥� He said to me: 鈥淚 want to be an engineer鈥�. And when I asked him why, he said: 鈥業 want to rebuild Syria鈥�. We should work night and day so that he does have the chance to rebuild Syria.鈥�

Annemiek聽Hoogenboom from the People鈥檚 Postcode Lottery 聽addressed the event and a video was played with an #UpForSchool message of support from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. A refugee girl called Noor told how her family had fled from Syria to neighbouring Lebanon.

Noor tells Beirut rally: 鈥淢y family decided to leave Syria after our school bus was terrorised.鈥�

鈥� A World at School (@aworldatschool)

Mira Hamoun, an A World at School Global Youth Ambassador from Lebanon, spoke about technology being the language of the future generation and of harnessing its power to change the world.

She added: 鈥淓ducation is a stepping stone towards a successful life.鈥�

Global Youth Ambassador Mira Hatoum at Beirut event: 鈥淓ducation is stepping stone to successful life.鈥�

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Young people from the Mouvement Social Group performed a piece about what it is like to be growing up as a refugee from a conflict.

Syrian children performing a heart warming act about their situation because of the war.

鈥� DOT Lebanon (@DOTLebanon)

Muslim Aid聽Lebanon Country Director Ahmad Fawzi handed in 12,000 signatures for the #UpForSchool Petition 鈥� which is just a fraction of the amazing 1.4 million names they have collected in total.

Amazing! has collected 1.4m Petition signatures. Presents 12k of them at Beirut youth rally

鈥� A World at School (@aworldatschool)

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