Palestinian children receiving medical treatment in the UK after being evacuated from Gaza have been granted leave to stay for up to two years, the British Home Office confirmed on Monday. While in the UK, the children and their accompanying family members have access to public funds, including treatment by the NHS.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Migration and Citizenship of the United Kingdom Mike Tapp also revealed that children or family members who wish to remain in the UK beyond the two years can apply for further permission to stay under existing routes within the Immigration Rules.
A 'staggering admission'
The news was met with disapproval by many, including MP Robert Lowe, who called it a “staggering admission.”
Lowe also said the Home Office declined to tell him how many Gazan children have actually arrived in the country.
“Remember the BBC reported in one group there were 10 children, with 50 ‘companions,’” he queried, adding, “We should not be accepting a single migrant from Gaza.”
The first group of severely ill Gazan children evacuated from the Strip arrived in the UK to receive medical treatment in mid-September.
A cross-government task force was in charge of coordinating the complex humanitarian operation. The children and their immediate family were evacuated from Gaza to Jordan, where they were met by British Embassy staff and security. They then traveled via Italy and on to the UK.
The operation was supported by various partners, including the World Health Organization, the Government of Jordan, and Royal Jordanian Airlines.
“Children are too often the innocent victims of war,” Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said. “In Gaza, where the healthcare system has been decimated and hospitals are no longer functioning, there are severely ill children unable to get the medical care they need to survive.”
WHO leads medical evacuation of 41 critical patients out of Gaza, chief says
The World Health Organization conducted their first medical evacuation since the ceasefire agreement on Wednesday, evacuating 41 critical patients and 145 companions out of Gaza, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on X.
He called on countries to show solidarity and open routes to expedite medical evacuation.
Jerusalem Post Staff and Reuters contributed to this article.