The Belgian disaster emergency agency B-FAST collected several young patients from Gaza yesterday. Together with their companions, they were brought to Belgium to receive the necessary medical care the Belgian foreign ministry says.
Due to the conflict with Israel, hospitals in the Gaza Strip are no longer operating properly. The shortage of resources and medical equipment is dire, medical facilities have been destroyed and aid workers and medical staff remain unprotected and cannot do their work.
‘All this is in violation of international humanitarian law,’ says the Belgian foreign ministry. The situation results in local people no longer having access to healthcare and operations that are necessary cannot take place.
Thanks to the European Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM), Belgium has now carried out a second evacuation of young patients. The operation was coordinated by the European Union and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The patients were transferred to Belgium and are being treated in local hospitals. The transport was provided by Romania, thanks to EU coordination. Belgium’s national crisis centre, asylum agency Fedasil and the immigration department are also involved in the operation.
A similar operation took place on 29 July bringing four young children in need of cancer treatment to Belgium. The medical evacuations are part of a wider series of B-FAST operations that also include donations of essential goods.