Palestinians leave Gaza in rare medical evacuation
Israel has reported the evacuation of over 200 seriously ill and injured Palestinians, marking one of the largest operations of its kind in months. The operation, managed by Cogat (Israel’s military body handling humanitarian affairs in Gaza) and the World Health Organization (WHO), allowed 231 individuals to pass through the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing. The evacuees included those suffering from autoimmune diseases, cancer, kidney conditions, blood disorders, and trauma injuries.
Despite this progress, the WHO notes that up to 14,000 more people remain waiting for evacuation for medical reasons. Since October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel, Egypt and Israel have kept their crossings with Gaza closed. However, between November and May, nearly 4,900 Palestinian patients in need of treatment abroad were allowed to leave via the Rafah crossing after Egypt reopened it temporarily. Since May, only 229 patients have been evacuated, according to the UN.
Additionally, the WHO and Cogat announced the successful completion of a polio vaccination campaign in Gaza. Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO’s director-general, reported that 94% of children under 10 had received two doses of the vaccine since September. This initiative was prompted by the first polio case in Gaza in 25 years, which was discovered in August. The virus poses severe health risks, including paralysis and death.
The WHO and other UN agencies resumed vaccination efforts in Gaza City after delays caused by Israeli airstrikes, displacement, and restricted access in northern Gaza. A recent attack on a hospital briefly interrupted the three-day vaccination campaign. Local medical staff attributed the strike to an Israeli drone, while the Israeli military stated it was investigating but did not believe it was responsible. Despite challenges, 105,500 children in northern Gaza received their second dose, achieving an 88% coverage rate.
He warned that “7,000-10,000 children couldn’t be reached for their second doses and are thus vulnerable to polio”.
Parts of northern Gaza were not included in the vaccinations due to the continuation of intense Israeli military operations in towns like Jabalia and Beit Lahia.
The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) on Wednesday morning announced that troops had started to operate in Beit Lahia following what it said was intelligence “indicating the presence of terrorists and terrorist infrastructure”.
The IDF called on all remaining civilians to leave the area through what it called “organized routes for their safety”.
Beit Lahia has come under heavy bombardment since the IDF launched a ground offensive in neighboring Jabalia a month ago, saying it was acting against regrouping Hamas fighters.
The IDF said its troops had killed 50 “terrorists” in Jabalia over the past day.
The BBC and other international media are not able to get access to the Gaza Strip and so cannot independently verify these claims.
The people transported out of Gaza in the medical evacuation operation will be taken to the United Arab Emirates or Romania for treatment.
One of those being moved was Khuloud Tabasi’s son Mohammed.
Hugging her husband as she entered the ambulance in the southern city of Khan Younis, Khuloud said after four operations her son’s “situation went from bad to worse… Thank God [the WHO] organized the evacuation of my son.”
Israel has been under growing international pressure to do something to improve the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
Last weekend, 15 senior UN figures said conditions in the north were “apocalyptic”, with the entire population “at risk of death from starvation, disease, and violence”.
Israel has also faced calls from its ally, the US, to take action. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned the Israeli government on 13 October that it had 30 days to “surge” humanitarian aid to Gaza or risk having some US military assistance cut off.
The numbers still in need of medical support are huge, with 19 out of Gaza’s 36 hospitals out of service and the other 17 only partially functional.
Dr Marwan Abu Saada is the general manager of the al-Shifa medical complex in Gaza City, which was left in ruins after being raided by Israeli forces for a second time in March.
The IDF said it had been used by Hamas for military purposes, something the group has always denied.
Parts of al-Shifa have now been rebuilt and reopened, including the emergency department and the hospital recently received patients evacuated from hospitals in Beit Lahia.
Dr Abu Saada said there were children with leukemia, people with breast and other cancers, as well as those disabled by the fighting.
“They desperately need to travel abroad as soon as possible,” he said. “Since none of the treatment facilities are available in Gaza.”
While Wednesday’s evacuation has been widely welcomed, the numbers taken to the UAE and Romania are a small fraction of the total who need medical aid.
More than that, as long as the fighting continues, the numbers in need of help will continue to grow.
