The first group of Spaniards residing in Gaza begins to leave this Monday. There are about 40 people, as confirmed by diplomatic sources to this newspaper. The evacuation thus concludes for them a five-week ordeal in which they have been trapped in the middle of the bombings and Israel’s siege against the Strip, which has caused the death of at least 11,000 people, including 4,000 children. 22 of those who are going to leave are minors.
“The latest information is that the first Hispano-Palestinians have crossed the Palestinian checkpoint and are already at the checkpoint to enter Egypt definitively,” confirmed the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, in statements upon his arrival at the meeting with European counterparts.
The Spaniards, of Palestinian origin, were summoned at eight in the morning at the Rafá crossing, which connects Gaza with Egypt. That’s where foreign citizens are coming out They were in the Strip when Israel began its offensive, on October 7, in retaliation for the Hamas attack that killed 1,400 Israelis.
Once the pass was crossed, the Spanish They will be transferred to Cairo, from where a Spanish Air Force plane will bring them to Spain. The same diplomatic sources assure that nothing guarantees evacuation, because there may be unforeseen events, and that in any case the border verification process is expected to be slow.
The Spanish consulate in Jerusalem handed over the names to the authorities of those first Spaniards residing in Gaza selected to leave. They have to receive the approval of both Israel and Egypt. The list is published by the Gaza Crossings and Borders Authority on its Facebook account every night, according to EFE.
Foreigners evacuated from Gaza
About 500 people from Russia, Poland and Brazil They left this Sunday through the same crossing, which has temporarily reopened, after being closed practically during the entire conflict that has devastated the Mediterranean Strip for five weeks. Since November 1, when the first group left, more than 1,400 people have been evacuated, first foreigners and then Palestinians with dual nationality. Among them, those who had passports from the US, Canada, Germany, Holland, France, Poland, India, the Philippines, Russia or Brazil.
Two Spaniards, both humanitarian workers, They managed to get out in the first days: Raúl Incertis, anesthetist for Doctors Without Borders It came out on November 1st; and the next day Jesús Pérez Arellano, a worker in the Office of the Special Coordinator for the Peace Process in the Middle East, did so.
One of the Russian-Palestinians evacuated this Sunday has assured international agencies after crossing the pass that he and his family have spent 35 days practically without water, electricity and with little food. Another woman, the first thing they have done to her when crossing the pass is to draw blood (to check for diseases, possibly). They have all been told that they will go to Cairo first and then go to their destination countries.
Evacuation of the Spanish from Gaza
Around 180 Spaniards reside in Gaza, as confirmed by the coordinator of the Spanish community in the enclave to EFE. Saleh El-Sousi is confident that everyone be out “in less than five days“. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs already has the operation prepared in Egypt so that the Spaniards from Gaza can leave in the coming days.
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It is the first time since the war began that Spaniards residing in the Strip have received official confirmation from the Spanish Consulate in Jerusalem about evacuation plans.
The majority of Spaniards in Gaza already They are located in the cities of Rafah and Khan Younisin the southern part of the enclave, where around 1.7 million Gazans are displaced fleeing intense attacks in the north.