Health Secretary Wes Streeting confirms “critical” evacuations as humanitarian crisis deepens with death toll surpassing 64,000 and famine gripping northern Gaza
Ten critically ill Palestinian children have arrived in Britain for urgent NHS treatment, marking the first successful medical evacuation from Gaza since the government announced its humanitarian scheme in July, as the World Health Organisation confirmed its support for the emergency operation.
The children, accompanied by 50 family members and guardians, landed in the UK on Tuesday following months of diplomatic negotiations amid Gaza’s collapsing healthcare infrastructure, where the vast majority of hospitals have been destroyed or rendered inoperable by Israeli military operations. The Department of Health and Social Care confirmed the arrivals represent the initial cohort of what officials describe as a complex humanitarian mission.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the evacuations marked “the start of their journey towards recovery” for young patients who have “witnessed horrors no child should ever see.” Speaking about the humanitarian crisis, he stated: “No one can fail to be distressed by the devastating impact the war has had on the children of Gaza, and I cannot imagine the fear and anguish their families have endured.
The medical evacuations come as a United Nations Commission of Inquiry delivered its most damning assessment yet, concluding on Monday that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. The 72-page report found Israeli authorities responsible for four of the five genocidal acts defined by the 1948 Genocide Convention, including killing members of a group, causing serious bodily and mental harm, deliberately inflicting conditions calculated to destroy the group, and preventing births.
It is clear that there is an intent to destroy the Palestinians in Gaza through acts that meet the criteria set forth in the Genocide Convention,” declared Navi Pillay, Chair of the Commission and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. The commission urged all states to fulfil their legal obligations under international law “to end the genocide” and punish those responsible.
Israel’s Ambassador to the UN in Geneva, Daniel Meron, dismissed the findings as “scandalous” and “fake,” accusing the report’s authors of being “Hamas proxies” and calling for the immediate abolition of the commission. The Israeli Foreign Ministry rejected what it called a “distorted and false report” that “relies entirely on Hamas falsehoods.”
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper emphasised the dire circumstances necessitating the evacuations: “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.” She called the children’s arrival a reflection of Britain’s “determined commitment to humanitarian action and the power of international co-operation.
The WHO, which coordinated the medical assessments and evacuations, confirmed it had supported the transfer of the ten children assessed as priority cases by Gazan medical specialists. The organisation reported that only 19 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain operational, with most providing only basic emergency care whilst struggling under severe supply shortages, lack of health workers, and persistent insecurity.
The evacuation scheme, first announced by Prime Minister Keir Starmer on 25 July, follows twenty months of campaigning by British doctors, MPs, and the charity Project Pure Hope, which had previously arranged private medical evacuations for three Palestinian children. The government taskforce working on the evacuations partnered with the WHO to identify children needing highly specialist medical care unavailable in Gaza’s devastated health system.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, the death toll from Israeli military operations has now exceeded 64,000 Palestinians, with the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification confirming famine conditions in Gaza City. The ministry reports that 420 people, including 145 children, have died from malnutrition since the blockade intensified, with 43,000 children under five and more than 55,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women currently suffering from malnutrition.
The humanitarian catastrophe continues to deepen as Israeli forces launched a ground offensive into Gaza City on Tuesday, with Defence Minister Israel Katz announcing the enclave was “on fire.” Palestinian residents described scenes of devastation as Israeli forces destroyed residential towers, mosques, schools, and roads in what survivors called an attempt at “wiping out our memories.
Abu Mohammed Hamed, a Gaza resident whose relatives have been killed and wounded in the assault, told reporters his cousin’s body remained trapped under a concrete block: “We don’t know how to take her out. We have been working on it since 3am.” Columns of Palestinians fled southward in donkey carts, rickshaws, and on foot as Israeli forces issued fresh evacuation orders.
“They are destroying residential towers, the pillars of the city, mosques, schools and roads,” said Abu Tamer, a 70-year-old man fleeing with his family. Some residents refused to leave, with Um Mohammad from the Sabra suburb stating: “It is like escaping from death towards death, so we are not leaving.”
The UK’s medical evacuation programme requires all patients and family members to undergo biometric security checks before travel, a requirement that has drawn criticism from campaign groups noting that countries like Italy and Spain waived such requirements for their evacuation programmes. The sole biometric processing office in Gaza has been closed since the war began, forcing evacuees to travel to Jordan or Egypt for processing.
Further evacuations are expected in the coming weeks, with government sources indicating that between 30 and 50 children could ultimately receive treatment under the scheme. The WHO estimates that up to 12,000 patients in Gaza require medical evacuation, but only 7,640 have been evacuated since October 2023, with the blockade severely restricting movements.
The evacuations represent a fraction of the humanitarian need in Gaza, where the UN reports that 100 per cent of the population faces high levels of acute food insecurity, with 640,000 people expected to face catastrophic Phase 5 levels by the end of September. Cooper acknowledged the limitations, stating: “We continue to call for the protection of medical infrastructure and health workers in Gaza, and for a huge increase in medicines and supplies to be allowed in.”
Israeli military commanders have expressed concern about the Gaza City assault, with some warning it could be a “death trap” for troops and endanger remaining hostages held by Hamas. Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pursue a ceasefire deal at a security meeting on Sunday, according to three Israeli officials.
The conflict began with Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, which killed approximately 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostages being taken, according to Israeli tallies. Israel’s subsequent military campaign has devastated Gaza’s infrastructure, with at least 94 per cent of hospitals damaged or destroyed and the entire healthcare system pushed “beyond breaking point,” according to the WHO.
NHS clinical teams across Britain are preparing to receive the young patients, with specialist support arranged to address both physical injuries and psychological trauma. The children will be matched with hospitals where capacity exists to provide the highly specialised care they require, with medical assessments ensuring it is clinically safe for each child to make the potentially hazardous journey.
The government has confirmed that participation in the evacuation scheme is solely through the WHO-supported process, with the UK unable to consider direct requests for assistance. Local authorities are working closely with the NHS to ensure both the children and their immediate families receive comprehensive support during their stay in Britain.
As international pressure mounts for a ceasefire, the UK continues to push for the immediate cessation of hostilities, the release of all hostages, and unrestricted humanitarian access to Gaza. Over the past two years, Britain has provided £241 million in Official Development Assistance to the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including £154 million in humanitarian funding.
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