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

According to Anadolu Agency, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced that the agency supported the evacuation of 106 patients, including 19 children, through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings last week. 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 shared on the US social media platform X.

He emphasized the crucial role of medical evacuations in offering people in urgent need of care a chance of survival. Tedros also highlighted the necessity of sustained access through multiple crossing routes to ensure timely medical treatment for patients.

The ongoing conflict in Gaza has resulted in the displacement of hundreds of thousands of residents, with many seeking refuge in temporary shelters across the Palestinian region. Since the commencement of Israel's military actions in October 2023, more than 73,400 Palestinians have been killed and over 174,400 injured, primarily due to Israeli attacks targeting civilian infrastructure, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

The recent US-brokered truce has not halted the violence entirely, with more than 1,300 Palestinians killed and over 4,000 injured, further compounding the humanitarian crisis in the region.