By Al-Fassel and AFP | 2023-11-02

Egypt will help evacuate "about 7,000" foreigners and dual nationals from Gaza, the foreign ministry said, with officials saying some 400 people were expected to cross into the country on Thursday (November 2).

For the first time on Wednesday after weeks of fighting between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, the Rafah border crossing opened to let people out of Gaza.

In a meeting with foreign diplomats, assistant foreign minister Ismail Khairat said Egypt was preparing "to facilitate the reception and evacuation of foreign citizens from Gaza through the Rafah crossing," a ministry statement said.

Khairat said that involved "about 7,000" people from "more than 60" nationalities, but the statement offered no specific details or a timeline.

A group of "100 travelers of foreign nationalities" left Gaza for Egypt on Thursday through Rafah, a border official said in a statement.

A total of 400 foreign passport holders as well as 60 wounded patients were due to cross by the day's end, said Wael Abu Mohsen, spokesman for the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing.

An Egyptian official said a total of 361 foreigners and dual nationals had entered Egypt on Wednesday.

Among them were 31 Austrians, four Italians, five French nationals and some Germans, their governments said.

Some staff from aid organizations, including Doctors Without Borders (MSF), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) also crossed, the Washington Post reported.

Officials initially said 76 wounded Palestinians were evacuated, but the official explained that number included 46 patients and 30 people accompanying them.

A medical official in the North Sinai provincial capital of al-Arish said a field hospital would be built to receive the wounded in Sheikh Zuweid, about 15km from Rafah.

The United States on Monday said it is "confident" of increasing the number of aid trucks getting into Gaza through the Rafah crossing to about 100 a day as part of the first phase of humanitarian aid efforts.

In ongoing talks with regional leaders, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is stressing the importance of protecting civilian lives and facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza.

This includes resuming essential services, and ensuring that Palestinians are not forcibly displaced outside Gaza.

Aid efforts pick up steam

Saudi Arabia said Thursday it was launching a fundraising campaign for Palestinians in Gaza.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman donated 20 million SAR (roughly $5.3 million) to the campaign, state-affiliated Al-Ekhbariya reported.

The Emirates News Agency on Thursday reported that 1,000 children from Gaza would receive medical treatment at hospitals in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The children will be accompanied to the UAE by their families and will return home upon completion of their medical treatment, it said.

UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed announced the move in a phone call with Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed and ICRC president Mirjana Spoljaric.

Türkiye is meanwhile waiting for approval from Egyptian authorities to set up field hospitals near Gaza, health minister Fahrettin Koca said Wednesday.

"We have made all preparations to establish 20 field hospitals at Al-Arish Airport, in the area close to the Rafah border gate" in Egypt, he said on X, formerly Twitter.

Turkish authorities have sent planes loaded with medicine and other aid to Al-Arish Airport for delivery to Gaza.

The health minister said Türkiye was planning to send a floating hospital to Gaza.

Cyprus said Tuesday it was intensifying efforts to get concrete support to open a maritime corridor for the delivery of aid to Gaza.