UK Announces £7.5 Mln Medical Aid for Gaza

The United Kingdom has pledged an additional £7.5 million in medical aid to support civilians in Gaza, as part of its ongoing response to the worsening humanitarian crisis in the region.

The initiative, led by the British Minister for the Middle East, Hamish Falconer, aims to strengthen emergency healthcare services for those affected by the conflict.

As part of this support package, £1 million will be directed to the World Health Organization in Egypt to assist the Egyptian government in providing treatment to patients medically evacuated from Gaza. This funding will help supply critical medical equipment, rehabilitation tools, and essential medications.

The latest pledge builds on a previous £1 million contribution announced in October 2023, which enhanced UK-Egypt cooperation in delivering humanitarian support to Gaza. The new package is designed to improve the capacity of Egyptian health facilities to accommodate the increasing number of evacuees in need of urgent care.

The British government emphasized that the ongoing collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system has left thousands of civilians without access to essential medical treatment. The additional funding is intended to help bridge that gap, ensuring that life-saving care is available to the most vulnerable.

The UK also confirmed a contribution of £1.5 million to UK-Med, a British medical NGO, to sustain the operation of its two field hospitals in Gaza.

These facilities, located in Deir al-Balah and Al-Mawasi, have provided healthcare services to over 410,000 patients since the onset of hostilities. The hospitals offer surgical care, maternal health services, rehabilitation, and general medical treatment.

In a further show of support, the UK has allocated £5 million to the UN’s Humanitarian Fund for the Occupied Palestinian Territory. This funding will support critical projects focused on health, water, sanitation, food security, protection, and shelter for civilians in Gaza.

Two children from Gaza recently arrived in the United Kingdom for specialized medical care, funded by the UK-based charity Project Pure Hope. The British government has facilitated logistical support for this initiative, underscoring its broader commitment to humanitarian efforts in the region.

According to the British Embassy in Cairo, Egypt has received the highest number of medical evacuees from Gaza, with patients treated across 170 hospitals in 24 provinces. The partnership between the UK, Egypt, and the World Health Organization has played a central role in sustaining these efforts.