Including employees of Doctors Without Borders, etc.
A total of 18 people, including 10 Japanese nationals and 8 Palestinian family members who had hoped to evacuate from the Gaza Strip in Palestine, entered Egypt through the Rafah checkpoint in southern Gaza on the 1st local time.
NHK and Jiji News reported on the 2nd that Yoichi Fukazawa, a political affairs officer at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said this at the Liberal Democratic Party’s Foreign Affairs Committee meeting this morning regarding the evacuation of Japanese nationals from the Gaza Strip.
According to Japanese government officials, on the 1st, multiple Japanese nationals evacuated from the Gaza Strip, where Israel continues military operations, to Egypt through the Rafah checkpoint on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
In relation to this, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa announced at the House of Representatives Security Committee on the morning of the 2nd that a total of 18 people, including 10 Japanese and 8 Palestinian family members who had hoped to evacuate on the 1st, were evacuated by land to Egypt, local time.
According to Jiji News, there were still Japanese people working for the UN or NGOs in the Gaza Strip. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that the 10 people who were evacuated were officials from international organizations and NGOs.
Authorities in charge of border management in the Gaza Strip released a list of foreign nationals allowed to pass through the Rafah checkpoint on the 1st, NHK reported, including five Japanese, including an employee of Doctors Without Borders, which provides medical support.
According to a photo obtained by NHK taken just outside the Rafah checkpoint on the Egyptian side on the evening of the 1st local time, an employee of the Japanese Embassy in Egypt and three people who appeared to be Japanese evacuees from the Gaza Strip were identified.
NHK also reported that a video filmed locally showed a Japanese Embassy employee wearing an orange vest with ‘JAPAN’ and ‘Japanese Government’ written on the back appearing to lead someone to the car in front of a vehicle marked “Japanese Embassy.”
However, it is known that a very small number of Japanese people are still staying in the Gaza Strip. They expressed that they do not wish to evacuate at this time because they have a living base in the area.
The Rafah checkpoint was opened on the 1st for foreigners evacuating to Egypt and Palestinians receiving treatment, and according to Arab media Al Jazeera, more than 340 foreign nationals entered Egypt. It was reported that foreigners would be evacuated on the 2nd as well.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.