STORY: Türkiye provides medical assistance to people in Gaza
SHOOTING TIME: Nov. 29, 2023
DATELINE: Nov. 30, 2023
LENGTH: 00:02:13
LOCATION: Ankara
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of a Turkish military plane carrying medicines and medical supplies for the people of the Gaza Strip (courtesy of Turkish Defense Ministry)
2. various of Turkish health teams identifying possible locations for the field hospital's services in the Gaza Strip (courtesy of Turkish Health Ministry)
3. various of the Gazan patients arriving at Türkiye for treatment in the capital Ankara (courtesy of ihlas news agency)
4. SOUNDBITE (Turkish): FAHRETTIN KOCA, Turkish Health Minister (courtesy of ihlas news agency)
5. various of the Gazan patients arriving at Türkiye for treatment in the capital Ankara (courtesy of ihlas news agency)

STORYLINE:

A Turkish military plane carrying eight tons of medical supplies for Gaza and nine healthcare professionals landed at the Al Arish Airport in Egypt on Wednesday, the semi-official Anadolu Agency reported.

The medical team will support the treatment of the injured people in the Palestinian enclave in cooperation with the Egyptian Health Ministry.

On its return flight to Ankara, the plane carried 23 patients, along with their 21 companions from Gaza.

The patients will be receiving treatment at Etlik City Hospital, and the evacuations of patients from Gaza will continue in the upcoming days, according to Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.

SOUNDBITE (Turkish): FAHRETTIN KOCA, Turkish Health Minister
"We have a patient group consisting mainly of children and young people, the youngest of which is a 7-month-old baby. The majority of the patients are mostly orthopedic-related patients with extensive fractures and traumas. One of our patients also has an eye-related trauma."

The Turkish health teams in Gaza City have finalized their work to identify possible locations for the field hospitals' service, the minister said.
  
The efforts were made during a temporary truce between Israel and Hamas, which started on Friday to facilitate the release of some hostages held by Hamas in exchange for some Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

The total Palestinian death toll since the deadly Hamas-Israel conflict has surpassed 15,000, including more than 6,150 children and over 4,000 women, according to Palestinian figures. The Israeli offensive was in retaliation to a Hamas attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 240 were taken captive.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Ankara.
(XHTV)