The purpose of this quantitative-descriptive research study is to examine the challenges faced by Palestinian ninth-graders. The study focuses particularly on the difficulties related to reading skills in an EFL environment. The study used a 20-item online questionnaire to gather information from a sample of (116) intermediate EFL students at basic schools. The research's findings show that EFL students have a variety of reading-related challenges. These challenges include having a limited vocabulary, having trouble understanding written texts, having trouble inferring and connecting information, and having trouble with decoding and pronunciation. The study also examines the variables that might affect these reading challenges, such as gender, school type, and setting of the school. The results showed that when certain demographic variables, such as gender, a school type, and school location, interact, some statistically significant differences are discovered