Today, all international MSF staff who had been unable to leave the Gaza Strip since October 7 successfully crossed the Egyptian border via the Rafah Crossing. This occurred following negotiations for foreign passport holders and international aid workers to cross.
This group includes 22 MSF staff. Although some names have been circulated on social media, we ask for their privacy and wellbeing to be respected.
A number of severely injured patients have also been allowed to cross to receive critical care. However, there are still over 20,000 injured people in Gaza with limited access to health care due to the siege.
A new team of international MSF staff, including a specialized medical team, has already been identified and is ready to enter Gaza as soon as the situation allows, to support the humanitarian and medical response. Meanwhile, many of our Palestinian colleagues continue to work and provide lifesaving care in hospitals and across the Gaza Strip, while the most basic protections for hospitals and medical personnel are not guaranteed.
A donation of 26 tons of medical equipment from MSF and the World Health Organization (WHO) arrives in El Arish, Egypt, on October 29. Egypt 2023 © WHO
Around two million Palestinians are still trapped in the Gaza Strip under shelling, including 300 Palestinian MSF staff and their families. Those who wish to leave Gaza must be allowed to do so without further delay. They must also be allowed the right to return.
Furthermore, we have to be able to move medical supplies and personnel into Gaza immediately to be able to respond to the desperate needs on the ground.
We reiterate our call for an immediate ceasefire. Critically needed humanitarian supplies and staff must be allowed into the Gaza Strip where hospitals are overwhelmed and the health care system is facing total collapse.
