Sick Palestinians and their carers leave Gaza in war’s largest medical evacuation
In the largest evacuation of its kind since the October 7 attacks, 231 sick Palestinians and their caregivers have been taken to Israel and then flown to the United Arab Emirates and Romania for treatment.
Palestinian medical evacuees at the Kerem Shalom border crossing with Israel before being taken abroad for treatment on Nov. 6, 2024. Photo by IDF Spokesperson/TPS-IL
The patients were taken in a convoy of ambulances to the Ramon Airport outside Eilat, then flown abroad.
“This is the largest number of patients and caregivers who have left through the Kerem Shalom crossing in the recent months, and just one of several humanitarian initiatives led by Israel in collaboration with the UAE, alongside cooperation with Romania and the European Union,” said Israel’s Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), which coordinates civilian issues between the Israeli government, military, international organizations, diplomats, and the Palestinian Authority in Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip.
In total, 86 Palestinian patients, accompanied by 124 family members, were taken to the UAE. The rest were flown to Romania.
The evacuation was coordinated with the World Health Organization, the European Union, and the host countries.
According to COGAT, 800 patients and caregivers have left Gaza in 15 groups for medical treatment in Jordan, Romania, the UAE, and the United States since October 7.
At least 1,200 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 97 remaining hostages, more than 30 have been declared dead. Hamas has also been holding captive two Israeli civilians since 2014 and 2015, and the bodies of two soldiers killed in 2014.
