Ceasefire Evacuations Offer Lifeline for Gaza's Sick and Injured Children

For the First Time in Nine Months, Medical Evacuations Through Rafah Border Crossing Bring Hope to the Needy

GAZA — A small girl in a pink sweater waved through the window of a bus filled with 37 sick and injured patients as it prepared to leave Gaza on Saturday. Among them were children battling cancer, needing medical care beyond what the war-torn region’s hospitals could provide. This marked the first time in nine months that medical evacuees were able to exit Gaza through the Rafah border crossing.

Outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, mothers clutched their ill children, desperately waiting for confirmation of their spot on the bus. Only a limited number of patients made the list, with each allowed to bring one companion, making the departure both a relief and a heartbreaking separation for many families.

One such child, 8-year-old Khalil, was not permitted to join his mother and sick brother on the bus. "They did not allow me to pass," he sobbed, still visibly upset as his brother and mother left without him.

The evacuees departed for Egypt through the Rafah crossing, which has reopened as part of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. Under the deal, 50 patients and wounded individuals are set to be evacuated each day with oversight from the World Health Organization (WHO). While much of the media attention has focused on the release of hostages, the medical evacuations are providing critical relief for those in dire need.

“The pace of evacuations needs to increase,” said Rik Peeperkorn, WHO’s representative for the occupied Palestinian territories, during the evacuation process. “We estimate that between 12,000 and 14,000 critical patients need to be evacuated.” Many of the patients are suffering from severe trauma injuries, cancer, or chronic illnesses, which Gaza's healthcare system is unable to treat due to its collapse during the conflict.

Gaza's healthcare infrastructure has been devastated by the ongoing conflict, which has led to thousands of wounded and untreated individuals with acute and chronic health conditions. WHO reports that between October 2023 and January 2024, over 1,200 attacks were made on Gaza’s health system, including at least 660 on health facilities.

Despite the challenges, the need for medical evacuations remains immense, and for some, it may be too late. Two of the children scheduled for evacuation on Saturday tragically died before they could leave.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres has called for the immediate evacuation of 2,500 children, ensuring their safe return to their families after treatment. However, medical evacuations were rare even before the Rafah crossing closed in May 2023. From October 2023 to May 2024, only about 150 patients, mostly children, were able to leave Gaza for treatment. The closure of the Rafah crossing made these evacuations even more difficult.

The long-awaited medical evacuations, though limited, provide a glimmer of hope to those who have been desperately waiting for lifesaving care.