World
Israel-Hamas war: British doctor in Gaza told by Foreign Office to prepare to cross into Egypt via the Rafah crossing
A Briton in Gaza said he has been told “be ready to go” by the UK’s Foreign Office as he waits to cross the border into Egypt.
Dr Abdel Hammad, a surgeon at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, arrived in Gaza on 6 October, a day before the attack on Israel by Hamas.
In an update to Sky News on Wednesday, Dr Hammad said he is still about 5km from the Rafah crossing, and is waiting to be allowed through.
It comes as the first group of injured evacuees from Gaza have moved over the border.
President Joe Biden said American citizens are expected to be among the first group of foreigners able to leave Gaza for Egypt via the Rafah crossing today.
“We expect American citizens to exit today, and we expect to see more depart over the coming days,” he wrote on social media platform, X.
It comes after a deal, mediated by Qatar, was struck between Egypt, Israel, and Hamas, to open the crossing to foreign and dual nationals currently trapped in Gaza.
Dr Abdel Hammad
The Palestinian General Authority for Crossing and Borders has published a list of more than 500 people, including 320 foreign passport holders, who will be allowed to leave via the crossing today.
It is still not known for certain if any British nationals were among the people referenced in the report.
The Foreign Office has given a full list of names of British Nationals and dependants in Gaza to Israeli and Egyptian authorities.
It said it is pressing at the most senior levels for all British Nationals to be able to cross as soon as it is practically possible.
Palestinians cross to the Egyptian side of the border. Pic: AP
Meanwhile, a Manchester school teacher trapped inside Gaza with 10 members of her husband’s family has told Sky News that British nationals could not cross the Rafah border today.
A spokesperson for Scotland’s first minister, whose wife’s parents are currently in Gaza, also said it was their understanding that British nationals were “not at present” included on the list of those being able to leave.
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Crowds enter Rafah crossing from Gaza
Footage broadcast on Egyptian state TV – and seen by Sky News – shows injured people being transported in ambulances across the border from the Gaza Strip.
Egypt’s health ministry says more than 80 wounded Palestinians are to be brought into the country for treatment, and a field hospital has been set up in an Egyptian town near the crossing.
The Italian foreign minister confirmed that four Italian citizens, one of whom was accompanied by his Palestinian wife, were also among those who have already left Gaza.
In other developments:
• The UK’s foreign secretary says teams are ready to assist British nationals in Gaza as soon as they are able to leave;
• The Israel Defence Forces says 16 of its troops have been killed in Gaza since Tuesday;
• Hamas claims seven hostages have been killed during a strike on a refugee camp in Gaza
Meanwhile, the UK’s Foreign Office says it understands the Rafah crossing will open for “controlled and time-limited periods” to let “specific groups” of foreigners and seriously wounded people leave Gaza.
The departure of British nationals “will take place in stages over the coming days,” according to the ministry.
“We have been working at every level of government to ensure the Rafah crossing could open and allow all British nationals to leave Gaza,” the department said in a statement.
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly says UK teams are ready to assist British nationals in the Gaza Strip as soon as they are able to leave.
UK officials have been sent to the area to provide support, the foreign office added.
However, a spokesperson for Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf says it is their understanding that “at this stage UK nationals are not at present included in this initial list of countries whose nationals can cross”.
“We welcome that the Rafah crossing looks set to be opened for a number of foreign nationals,” the spokesperson said.
“The first minister has been in contact with the foreign secretary this morning.
“We continue to liaise with the UK government and urge them to work with the Egyptian authorities so that all UK nationals can urgently leave Gaza as quickly as possible.”
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Crowds enter Rafah crossing from Gaza
According to the spokesperson, the first minister’s wife, Nadia, has spoken to her mother today, but the family remains “trapped in Gaza, without clean drinking water, and rapidly diminishing supplies”.
Rafah is Gaza’s only gateway to the rest of the world not directly controlled by Israel.
It is under the control of Egypt as part of an agreement with Israel and the European Union.
However, it has never been a normal, fully open border crossing and is tightly controlled by authorities in Cairo.
Read more:
What is the Rafah border crossing and who controls it?
How far has Israel got into Gaza?
Earlier, a convoy of Egyptian ambulances were seen waiting to go through the Rafah crossing from the Egyptian side
Over the years it has been closed for days, weeks and months at a time. When it does open it’s often intermittent and can suddenly close again.
It has been closed to civilians wishing to cross into Egypt since the start of last month’s conflict between Israel and Hamas – though a number of aid trucks have been allowed into Gaza through the Rafah crossing.