Gaza Strip - February 01, 2025 A group of sick and wounded Palestinians traveled to the Rafah crossing on Saturday to leave the Gaza Strip for medical treatment. Before their departure, they arrived at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City and were then transported by bus to the border. The medical evacuation is part of an effort to transport the first group of sick and wounded Palestinians through the Rafah crossing since the Israel-Hamas ceasefire took effect on January 19. According to a statement from the World Health Organization (WHO), it also marks the first operation to evacuate patients from Gaza since the Rafah crossing was closed in May. The WHO estimates that 12,000 to 14,000 sick and wounded Palestinians still need to be transported out of the Strip. The evacuees described the situation in Gaza as dire, emphasizing the urgent need for medical resources. They noted that many patients and injured individuals suffer from acute or chronic conditions requiring timely and regular treatment, which is largely unavailable in the Strip. Am Asmaa, a grieving mother, recounted the harrowing ordeal her family endured when their home was reduced to rubble in a bombing. Speaking with anguish, she described the devastating injuries her children suffered and the painful separation as they were treated in different hospitals. Shotlist: Gaza City, Gaza Strip - Feb 1, 2025: 1. Various of ambulance; 2. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Nihad Al-attar, patient's mother: "We came here after they contacted us about traveling for my daughter Rimas. We are very happy that she will receive treatment outside Gaza because we have suffered a lot here, and there is no treatment. We take her to the hospital weekly on a permanent basis to receive oxygen and an echo test."; 3. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Umm Khalil Awad, patient's mother: "My son suffers from two holes in his heart and a blocked valve. He had been receiving treatment at Al-Rantisi Hospital until the war started, and we were unable to treat him in Israel either. Then, we were displaced from Gaza to other places like Al-Bureij, Rafah, and Khan Yunis amidst extreme suffering."; 4. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Am Asmaa, mother of injured children: "Our four-story house was bombed and collapsed on us. All my children were injured. My injured children were distributed between two hospitals. My son has shrapnel in his back and lungs. My little girl has osteoporosis, and her hand was almost amputated. She also has injuries to her foot and skull."; 5. Various of sick, injured Palestinians on bus. [Restriction - No access Chinese mainland]