Foreign nationals are being allowed to leave Gaza via Egypt — the first people to be given permission to exit the Palestinian territory since the war between Israel and Hamas began.
A limited number of wounded Palestinian civilians have also entered Egypt through the Rafah crossing to receive medical treatment.
The U.K’s foreign office wrote on X: “We understand the crossing will be open for controlled and time-limited periods to allow specific groups of foreign nationals and the seriously wounded to leave.”
“It is therefore likely the departure of British nationals from Gaza will take place in stages over the coming days,” it added.
A list of foreign passport holders who can leave via the crossing was agreed following a deal between Israel, Egypt and Hamas brokered by Qatar, according to Reuters.
It includes people from Austria, Finland, the Czech Republic, Britain, Japan, Bulgaria, Indonesia, Australia and Jordan. Some 500 people are on the list expected to leave Wednesday, Reuters reported.
Ambulances carrying the first group of injured evacuees from Gaza have already crossed the border, according to Egyptian media.
The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, wrote on social media that the WHO “welcomed” the move but added: “We need an immediate acceleration in the flow of medical aid permitted into Gaza.”
After Hamas killed more than 1,400 people on October 7, Israel launched airstrikes and, recently, ground operations across Gaza, killing more than 8,500 people, including thousands of children, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
