A group of 28 premature babies from Gaza have been evacuated from a hospital inside the besieged Palestinian enclave to Egypt for treatment, according to footage from Egyptian television and a doctor at a Palestinian hospital.
“The babies came to me from Al Shifa hospital. They were in catastrophic condition when they arrived here,” said Dr. Mohammad Salama, head of the neonatal unit at Al-Helal Al-Emirati Maternity Hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza.
On Monday, medical staff on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing were seen carefully collecting babies from inside ambulances and placing them in mobile incubators, which were then moved across a parking lot to other ambulances.
The babies, out of a total of 31 who were transferred on Sunday from the besieged al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City to the maternity hospital in Rafah as a first step toward evacuation, were wearing only diapers and tiny green caps.
“The 28 babies have arrived safely in Egypt. “Three babies still remain in the Emirati Hospital and continue to receive treatment,” a World Health Organization spokesperson said in an emailed response to the Reuters news agency.
When asked about the babies’ conditions, she said: “All the babies are fighting serious infections and continue to need medical attention.”
