Today 17 patients from Gaza were evacuated to Italy in an operation organised by Italy with the support of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM). The patients – accompanied by 53 people – will be transported by 3 planes to various hospitals around Italy. It is the 20th such operation organised under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) since April 2024, following calls by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Welcoming the arrival of the patients in Italy, Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib stressed that ‘the medical evacuation of 17 patients from Gaza demonstrates the EU’s tangible solidarity with Gaza’s suffering population – civilians, in particular women and children, who should have never been a target. I warmly thank Italy for organising this operation and welcoming patients from Gaza, not only today but also since the launch of the EU-supported medical evacuations’.
The group of Palestinian patients was transported to Italy on 3 humanitarian flights. Italian Foreign Minister Tajani, from Milan airport, stressed the importance of humanitarian efforts as a contribution to alleviating the suffering of the Palestinian civilian population. ‘I would like to thank the European Union for its excellent cooperation’ said the Minister, adding ‘this is a fruitful example of how cooperation between the various institutions involved can make a concrete contribution to peace and to alleviating the suffering of so many innocent people’.
Background
In April 2024, the WHO requested the support of the Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism to medically evacuate Palestinian patients from Gaza to Europe. To date, a total of 223 patients [including the operation of 11 June 2025] and 503 companions have been evacuated to 11 Member States (Belgium, Germany, Greece, France, Spain, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania and Slovakia) and 3 UCPM Participating States (Albania, Norway, Türkiye).
