NI health department in discussions about accepting a number of seriously injured children from Gaza
Plans to evacuate more seriously ill or injured children from Gaza and bring them to the UK for medical treatment are being carried out "at pace", the Government has said.
It is unclear how many children might be involved, but it has been reported that the Government is to allow up to 300 young people to enter the UK to receive free medical care.
Ministers will enable children in severe need to receive taxpayer-funded care.
Some Gazan children have already been brought privately to the UK for medical treatment through an initiative by Project Pure Hope, but the Government has so far not evacuated any through its own scheme during the conflict.
More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to its health ministry, but The Lancet medical journal has previously estimated that deaths due to traumatic injuries is likely to be 40% higher.
Starvation in Gaza is 'unnacceptable', says Peter Kyle ahead of emergency Cabinet meeting
The number of injuries reached a new milestone of more than 150,000 injured or wounded in the past 22 months – one in 14 across the small strip of land.
Citing figures from the Gaza Health Ministry, Al Jazeera has said that 18,500 will require long-term rehabilitation, 4,700 have had one or more limbs amputated as a result of their injuries and nearly 1,000 of them are children.
More than 45,000 children are reported to have lost one or both parents.
Sinn Féin MLA Philip McGuigan has written to the Health Minister urging support for an initiative to provide treatment for seriously ill or injured children from Gaza.
The party's health spokesperson was speaking after media reports said the UK Government is to launch a scheme to evacuate children injured in Israel's ongoing genocidal campaign.
'The level of human suffering in Gaza, particularly among children, is appalling and intolerable,' said Mr McGuigan.
'I've written to Minister Nesbitt to ask what involvement his department has had in this initiative, and urged him to do everything possible to support these young people who are in such desperate need of assistance.
'Israel's systematic targeting of hospitals and other critical services, and its continued blockade, is causing devastation to an already beleaguered population.
'The Health Minister must now back this scheme and ensure every effort is made to provide healthcare to the sick and injured children of Gaza.'
The Department of Health said it is engaging with the UK Government and the other devolved administrations 'on the possibility of providing medical treatment in the UK for children from Gaza.'
It added: 'Discussions are ongoing regarding the possibility of accepting a small number of children.'
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