A communiqué published on the official website of the Italian Foreign Ministry indicates that the children will arrive on Thursday afternoon at Ciampino International Airport in Rome, from where they will be transferred in ambulances to various specialized health centers located in various regions of the country.

This initiative was made possible thanks to cooperation between the Italian Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense, together with the Civil Protection Department.

These national entities are working in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Civil Protection Mechanism, with the support of the Egyptian health authorities.

Last Wednesday, the children and their companions managed to cross the Rafah border crossing into Egypt and were initially admitted to the Italian Hospital in Cairo, where they underwent the medical checks necessary for their transfer to Rome.

The Italian health aid to the population of Gaza, affected by Tel Aviv’s attacks which have killed more than 46,000 people since the beginning of the conflict, was decided at a meeting held at the Foreign Ministry’s headquarters on January 22, presided over by the head of the Ministry, Antonio Tajani.

Representatives of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Program (WFP) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) took part in the meeting.

The Rector of the University of Rome La Sapienza, Antonella Polimeni, announced a first plan of action in the health sector, in which teaching hospitals will work, for the care of 21 children with cancer, as well as a project to meet the needs of the mother and child population of Gaza.

ef/abo/mem/ort