Gaza official says 22,000 Palestinians need treatment abroad, wants evacuation of 1,000 daily

The head of the Gaza government media office, Ismail al-Thawabteh, told Anadolu on Thursday that 22,000 wounded and sick Palestinians in the Gaza Strip urgently need to travel abroad for treatment.

He wants crossings to be fully opened to allow 1,000 patients to leave daily.

His remarks came in response to Israeli figures on Palestinian movement through Gaza crossings since a ceasefire took effect last October.

The Times of Israel news site earlier cited Israel’s Border Crossings Authority, which said around 10,500 people had left Gaza since the ceasefire took effect.

The report added that 6,000 returned to Gaza during the period.

“The figures published by the Israeli occupation about the departure of 10,000 Palestinians and the return of 6,000 others since October are very poor and do not meet the minimum level of the catastrophic humanitarian need in the Gaza Strip,” said al-Thawabteh.