The UAE on Wednesday evacuated 57 Palestinian patients from the Gaza Strip to receive crucial medical care in the Emirates.
The evacuation of patients and family members was conducted via Ramon Airport in Israel and the Karam Abu Salem crossing.
It was the 29th such humanitarian mission since the start of the war in Gaza, under which 2,961 sick and wounded Palestinians and companions have been flown to safety.
The assistance is in line with President Sheikh Mohamed’s directive for treatment to be provided at UAE hospitals to 1,000 wounded Palestinian children and a further 1,000 cancer patients in a show of solidarity with Gaza.
The UAE remains committed to easing the suffering of civilians bearing the brunt of the conflict, said Sultan Al Shamsi, Vice Chairman of the UAE's International Aid Agency.
At least 68,643 Palestinians have been killed and 170,655 wounded since the Gaza war began on October 7, 2023.
Much of Gaza's population of more than two million has been displaced by the war, with chronic food shortages and limited access to health services and aid leading to a worsening humanitarian crisis.
The Israeli military began its offensive after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting 240.
The latest aid effort comes as a US-brokered ceasefire comes under increasing pressure.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Wednesday that an attack on Israeli soldiers in Gaza and subsequent Israeli strikes were “very disappointing and frustrating”.
Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, Sheikh Mohammed said Hamas had signalled its willingness to relinquish control of Gaza, and Qatar was pressing the group to recognise the need to disarm.
“We are trying to push them in order to get to a point where they acknowledge that they need to disarm and they need to move on to the next stage,” he said.
