Additional Coverage:
- Dozens of sick, injured kids evacuated from Gaza, 1st time since Rafah border closed (newsbreak.com)
The World Health Organization (WHO) and Israel’s COGAT (Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories) have successfully evacuated numerous ailing children from Gaza for medical care. As announced by COGAT on the social platform X, a total of 68 young patients, along with their caregivers, passed through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Egypt and other nations. This operation was orchestrated with help from the U.S., Egyptian authorities, and the global community.
This move marks the first set of medical evacuations from Gaza since the Rafah border with Egypt was sealed on May 7 following an Israeli military operation. During a press briefing at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis, Dr. Mohammed Zaqout, head of Gaza’s hospital services, highlighted the evacuation effort, crediting the WHO and American nonprofits for their critical roles.
According to Dr. Zaqout, there remains an urgent need for medical treatments outside of Gaza for over 25,000 individuals, including 10,200 cancer diagnoses, with 980 cases involving children.
In related news, WHO’s chief Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus took to X to share footage of families preparing to leave Gaza for medical attention, advocating for continued and streamlined evacuations through accessible routes including the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings to Egypt, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and beyond as required.
Hanan Balkhy from the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean emphasized the plight of thousands still in need of medical evacuations, with only a fraction of the applicants since October 7 having been assisted. She called for the urgent establishment of safe passages for the critically ill from Gaza.
In a stark contrast to these operations, aid workers report devastating conditions within Gaza, detailing widespread destruction and displacement. Louise Wateridge of the UNRWA shared her observations of despair in Rafah and the adjusting lives of families amidst the rubble, describing Gaza as a place of palpable suffering.
The backdrop to this humanitarian crisis is the ongoing conflict between Hamas and Israel, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and injuries on both sides since the outbreak of hostilities on October 7, 2023.