Smoke rises following Israeli bombardment on Gaza City on Sunday, October 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Abed Khaled)
MANILA, Philippines — Israel has allowed two Filipino doctors to leave Gaza, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega announced on Wednesday.
De Vega said that the DFA is coordinating with Israel to prioritize Filipinos among nationalities allowed to cross the border to Egypt.
“Israel first allows the persons to exit Gaza and proceed to the Egypt border where they are processed by Egyptians for entry. The two Filipino doctors working with Doctors without Borders – an international humanitarian organization- are among the selected foreign nationals who have been allowed to exit Gaza and cross to Egypt. But this is just the initial list,” De Vega told INQUIRER.net.
De Vega said the crossing should happen at any moment.
Israel has laid siege to Gaza, leaving thousands of Palestinians dead. It had even struck Gaza’s largest refugee camp, killing at least 47 people in an effort that lead to one Hamas commander dead.