Thousands more Gaza patients await medical evacuation: WHO chief

Thousands of patients in the Gaza Strip are still awaiting medical evacuation for urgent treatment, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the agency last week supported the evacuation of 106 patients, including 19 children, through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings. They were accompanied by 132 people.

Since October 2023, 13,237 patients, including 6,276 children, and 16,406 companions have been evacuated from Gaza, Tedros said on the US social media company X.

"Medical evacuations give people in need of urgent care a chance of survival," he said.

Tedros stressed that sustained access through multiple crossing routes is needed to ensure patients receive timely medical treatment.

Israel's ongoing genocidal actions in the Gaza Strip have displaced hundreds of thousands of local residents, many of whom have sought refuge in temporary shelters and tents across the Palestinian enclave.

Since the US-brokered truce, more than 1,300 Palestinians have been killed and over 4,000 injured, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Since October 2023, when Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza, more than 73,400 Palestinians have been killed-and over 174,400 injured-by relentless Israeli attacks, most of which targeted civilian infrastructure.