The UAE has launched an initiative to bring children in need of urgent treatment and their relatives from the Gaza Strip to the country.
The first Gaza child rescue flight, carrying 15 people including children and relatives, landed safely after a journey from Egypt's El Arish airport to Abu Dhabi, the state news agency WAM of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) said.
The flight is part of an initiative by UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to provide medical assistance to 1,000 children in the Gaza Strip. The patients require urgent medical treatment such as serious injuries, severe burns or cancer. Relatives of the children are allowed to accompany them to the UAE.
Palestinian children are taken off a plane in Abu Dhabi on November 18 after a flight from Egypt. Photo: AFP
The territory is completely isolated, with severe shortages of clean water, medical supplies and fuel. Israel has also targeted hospitals in the Gaza Strip, accusing Hamas of hiding in civilian facilities.
The UAE normalized relations with Israel in 2020. Anwar Gargash, foreign affairs adviser to the UAE president, warned that the longer the crisis in the Gaza Strip continues, the more dangerous it will become. He expressed concern that the crisis could spiral out of control, fuel radicalization and threaten stability in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, the United Nations Humanitarian and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Martin Griffiths, continued to call on all parties to a "humanitarian ceasefire" in the Gaza Strip to pave the way for essential goods to reach refugees and civilians to be able to evacuate to safety.
"We are not asking for anything excessive. We are only calling for basic measures to meet the basic needs of civilians and control the crisis," he said, calling on Hamas to release all hostages unconditionally to promote a ceasefire.
Location of Egypt, Israel and UAE. Graphics: GIS
Thanh Danh (According to CNN, AFP )
Source link
Comment (0)