Doctors Without Borders calls for urgent medical evacuations from Gaza

• MSF warns that thousands of Gazans urgently need medical evacuation.
• Over 900 people have died while waiting to leave Gaza for treatment.
• Evacuations have sharply declined since the Rafah crossing closure.

A senior official from Doctors Without Borders is calling on governments to urgently open their borders to thousands of Gazans who cannot access lifesaving medical care, warning that many are dying before ever reaching a hospital abroad.

“The need is really huge,” said Hani Isleem, the coordinator overseeing medical evacuations from Gaza for Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). Speaking to Agence France-Presse (AFP), he stressed that the international response so far amounts to “just a drop in the ocean.”

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), more than 8,000 patients have been transported out of Gaza since October 7, 2023. But over 16,500 people are still waiting for treatment outside the territory. Isleem emphasized that this figure only reflects those formally registered for evacuation. “Our estimate is that it is three to four times that number,” he said.

More than 30 countries have accepted patients since the war began, though only a few, most notably Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, have taken significant numbers. Among European states, Italy has approved more than 200 cases, while larger nations such as France and Germany have not yet taken any. Switzerland received 20 children in November.

Isleem recently accompanied 13 children, aged from two months to 16 years, on a flight to Switzerland. Among them were four infants with severe congenital heart defects, cancer patients, and children needing complex orthopedic surgery. Several were rushed into operations immediately on arrival to prevent “irreversible damage.”

Despite worsening conditions inside Gaza’s hospitals, Isleem noted that medical evacuations have slowed drastically. Before the Rafah crossing into Egypt was shut by 'Israel' in May 2024, roughly 1,500 patients were evacuated monthly. That number has since collapsed to around 70.

The slowdown has continued even after the US-brokered ceasefire that took effect on October 10, and despite a steep drop in 'Israeli' refusals. Isleem pointed out that 'Israel’s' denial rate had decreased from about 90 percent to just five percent, but insisted that even that figure is unacceptable. Authorities, he said, should not “block any patients from leaving Gaza to access treatment.”

In October, 148 evacuations were completed; in November, just 71. Isleem expects only around 30 for December. He attributed the stagnation not to 'Israel' at this point, but to the “long and often politicised” approvals process in destination countries. “Countries are taking a long time to decide or allocate the budget for these patients, but (they cannot) wait for this discussion to happen,” he cautioned.

More than 900 people have died while waiting for medical evacuation since October 2023, a figure Isleem believes is far below the true toll.

He also criticised governments for restricting their intake almost exclusively to minors. “99.9 percent of countries are asking for children,” he said. Adults needing urgent care, he warned, are being overlooked even though they make up three-quarters of the waiting list. Additional criteria, such as refusing anyone accompanied by family members or by male siblings over 18, are further delaying or blocking evacuation efforts.

Isleem appealed to governments to end what he described as a selective screening process. Countries, he said, should “stop this selection shopping list” and “focus only on the needs and saving people's lives.”