61 people allowed to leave Gaza for Egypt — Anadolu Agency
Sixty-one people, including patients and their escorts, were allowed to leave the Gaza Strip, Palestine, for Egypt for treatment, instead of the previously approved group of 136 people. Gaza’s Health Ministry reported this on September 17, Anadolu Agency reported.
The number of permits was reduced
According to the ministry, Israeli authorities initially officially approved the departure of 136 patients and escorts. Later, the number of people allowed to leave was reduced to 72, and the rest were sent back.
After patient transportation began, the Israeli side, according to the ministry’s statement, asked for another 11 patients and escorts to be returned. After this, the final number allowed to leave stood at 61 people.
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Ministry protest
Gaza’s Health Ministry stated that the patients and injured people included in the group require urgent specialized medical care in Egypt. The ministry decided to limit departures to critically ill patients being transported by ambulances and return the rest as a collective protest against what it called an unjustified punitive policy.
The ministry called the decision a flagrant violation of the right to treatment and said that such restrictions could endanger the lives of hundreds of patients. It urged the World Health Organization, the UN High Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and other international institutions to intervene immediately and pressure Israeli authorities to end the restrictions.
The ministry also called for the departure of all patients to be fully ensured in accordance with agreements reached in Sharm el-Sheikh in October, and for all those referred for treatment abroad to continue being allowed to leave without restrictions or exceptions.
