Egypt receives 28 premature babies from Gaza; critical cases to be treated in Cairo

Ahram Online , El-Sayed Gamal El-Din , Monday 20 Nov 2023

Egypt received on Monday 28 premature Palestinian babies evacuated from the besieged Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing in North Sinai, Minister of Health and Population Khaled Abdel-Ghaffar announced.

Gaza

Abdel-Ghaffar said that 12 babies have been transferred to the New Administrative Capital Hospital via air ambulance, following the directives of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi.

Hospitals in Arish and North Sinai received the remainder through ambulances equipped with incubators brought by the Egyptian health ministry.

Previous reports said 31 babies were evacuated from Al-Shifa hospital in the embattled strip but it was not immediately clear why only 28 arrived in Egypt.

Mohamed Zaqout, the director of Gaza hospitals said a UN team, led by the WHO, had managed to evacuate 31 premature babies from Al-Shifa Hospital on Sunday.

However, health officials said they are in “extremely critical condition.”

The newborns – who captured the world's attention over the past days – were receiving urgent care in the southern Gaza city of Rafah after being evacuated from the Gaza hospital, where power was cut and supplies ran out amid ongoing Israeli blockades and aggression.

 

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