At least 85 sick and seriously injured Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, including 35 children , were evacuated to Abu Dhabi to receive specialized medical care, said the Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, quoted by Reuters and BTA.
"This highly complex joint evacuation was carried out with the support of the United Arab Emirates, WHO and partners. This is the largest medical evacuation since October 2023," Ghebreyesus wrote on Tuesday on the "X" social network.
Evacuate patients suffer from a variety of serious illnesses, including cancer, neurological problems and heart disease. They are accompanied by 63 members of their families and caregivers, added the head of the WHO.
The medical sector in Gaza has been paralyzed in the course of the nearly 10-month-long military operation triggered by the attack by "Hamas" against southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 253 hostages. Israel storms and bombs hospitals, justifying its actions by arguing that the Palestinian Islamist group "Hamas" uses medical facilities for military purposes, notes Reuters.
Medical evacuations from Gaza have been rare since May, when the "Rafah" - the main checkpoint used for this type of operation was closed as Israel stepped up its military offensive in the southern part of the Palestinian enclave. The WHO previously reported that around 10,000 patients were waiting to be evacuated.