Rafah, Egypt - February 12, 2025 The ceasefire agreement reached by Israel and Hamas on Jan 15 has allowed dozens of Palestinians in critical condition to leave the Gaza Strip for urgent medical treatment in Egypt, after the Rafah border crossing reopened as part of the agreement. The truce caps the number of citizens crossing into Egypt at 50 per day. Due to the proximity to the border between Egypt and Gaza, hospitals in northeast Egypt's North Sinai are at the forefront of the health care services provided to Palestinians. The Al Areesh Public hospital is the biggest and the most technologically advanced in this part of Egypt. This is the hub where health workers plan the treatment course for sick and injured citizens coming from Gaza. Dozens of Palestinians are finding some relief after their sick family members got cleared to leave the Gaza strip for urgent medical treatment. Zainab Basala, a 54-year-old Palestinian citizen, arrived in Egypt with her son Mohamed and her daughter Tasneem who suffers Aplastic Anemia, a rare and severe blood disease causing her body cannot produce enough blood cells for her to survive. The Abo Zannad's are among the few Palestinians who have finally found relief, thanks to the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. After finding out that the father needs urgent open heart surgery, the World Health Organization put him on top of the list of people cleared for leaving Gaza. Palestinians can only leave Gaza through the Rafah crossing, which only came to operation on Feb 2. As of Monday, only 208 Palestinians in critical condition have managed to pass through the Rafah crossing, accompanied by 288 family members. This week, Hamas froze the exchange of hostages, citing multiple violations by Israel, including the obstruction of essential medical supplies from entering the embattled region. Shotlist: Rafah border crossing, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025: 1. Ambulances entering border crossing; 2. Ambulance running; Al Areesh, North Sinai, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 3. People outside hospital building; 4. Various of people talking beside ambulance; 5. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Mohamed Abdel Aziz, Executive Manager, Citizens Services, Al Areesh Public Hospital (partially overlaid with shot 6): "First in the Rafah crossing a committee from the Egyptian Health Ministry conducts a quick evaluation of the arriving Palestinians. They then get sent to hospitals all over the country, however most of them get sent to Al Areesh. They are arranged to be sent to different hospitals depending on their health condition and the medical specialization of treatment needed."; Rafah border crossing, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 [SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 6. Ambulances parking near border crossing, people walking; [SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] Al Areesh, North Sinai, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 7. Various of Palestinian citizen Zainab Basala sitting together with her daughter Tasneem, her son Mohamed, talking; 8. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Zainab Basala, Palestinian citizen (partially overlaid with shots 9-10): "Everyone was very helpful, still the trip was very tiring especially for her. My daughter needs weekly transfusion of platelets and blood. I left my boys in Gaza, I also left my husband. He's also sick. He has blood cancer. During the war he didn't take any kind of medication. It was not available. He requested to travel but he has not been fortunate to leave."; [SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 9. Various of people carrying bags, luggages; 10. Various of Zainab Basala sitting together with her family members, talking; [SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] 11. Various of Palestinian citizen Abo Zannad, his family members at hospital; 12. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Iman Abo Zannad, Palestinian citizen (partially overlaid with shots 13-14): "My husband already had a chronic heart disease. His symptoms were simple, but during the war it became worse. We've faced tough circumstances. My sister's family and his brother's family died. He deteriorated. He needed medication, which was not available, even alternatives were difficult to find, and if we managed to find it, the price would have been immense."; [SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 13. Ambulances parking, people walking; 14. Patients on ambulance, staff working; [SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE] Al Areesh, North Sinai, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 15. Various of Palestinian family; Rafah border crossing, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 16. Various of ambulances passing through border crossing; Al Areesh, North Sinai, Egypt - Feb 12, 2025 17. Various of patients, medical staff at hospital; 18. Child in hospital bed. [Restriction - No access Chinese mainland]