BERLIN (Reuters) -Switzerland plans to take in about 20 injured children from the Gaza Strip for medical treatment, the government said on Friday.
It is unclear when the evacuation of the children can be carried out due to the situation on the ground in Gaza, but coordination efforts are underway, it added in a statement.
The selection will be made in close coordination with the World Health Organization, which maintains lists of patients, and security checks will be conducted on the selected children and their accompanying family members, the government added.
Upon arrival, they will go through the asylum process.
The government will cover the costs of coordination and transportation, while the medical costs will be voluntarily borne by the Swiss cantons that take in the children or by the hospitals themselves, it added.
The WHO has registered around 19,000 patients for evacuation from Gaza, including 4,000 children, many with life-threatening injuries or illnesses that cannot be adequately treated locally.
The war in Gaza, which is nearing the two-year mark with no ceasefire in sight, has caused major destruction and killed more than 65,000 Palestinians, according to local health authorities.
It began when Hamas militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
(Reporting by Miranda Murray, editing by Thomas Seythal)
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