1.5K volunteers of Egyptian Red Crescent offer support for Injured Palestinians

CAIRO – 18 January 2025: A total of 1,500 volunteers of the Egyptian Red Crescent stationed in Arish and Rafah to offer psychological and on-site support to the injured Palestinians coming from the Gaza Strip after the end of the war, in coordination with the Palestinian Red Crescent, said Maya Morsy, Egypt’s Minister of Social Solidarity and Vice President of the Egyptian Red Crescent.

During her visit to the Rafah borer crossing and some North Sinai hospitals with Minister of Health Dr. Khaled Abdel-Ghaffar, Morsy announced the country's full readiness to begin operations related to the Gaza ceasefire as soon as it officially takes effect. 

It is scheduled that the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel will come into force in the beseiged Gaza Strip at 8:30 a.m. (local time of Gaza) on Sunday, January 19, 2025.

Morsy emphasized that the Egyptian Red Crescent is the primary coordinating body with international organizations and the Palestinian Red Crescent, responsible for overseeing the collection and distribution of aid both within Egypt and from abroad. This coordination ensures the rapid and effective delivery of humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza.

Morsy expressed confidence in the preparedness of humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. She highlighted the ongoing efforts to intensify aid in line with the directives of Egypt’s political leadership, and emphasized the importance of accelerating the pace of aid delivery to ensure timely assistance.

The Minister of Social Solidarity stated that the Red Crescent’s warehouses are stocked with substantial quantities of humanitarian aid, and that trucks are lined up, ready to move as soon as the signal is given. The primary goal now, she noted, is to intensify aid and ensure it reaches as many beneficiaries as possible. 

She also pointed out that the types of aid—ranging from food and medical supplies to fuel—are being carefully selected to meet the specific needs of Gaza's people, maximizing the impact of the assistance.

Dr. Morsy further explained that the Ministry of Social Solidarity is working closely with the Ministry of Health and the Egyptian Red Crescent to prepare facilities for receiving patients and the injured. Additionally, psychological support is being provided through volunteers, and efforts are being coordinated with international organizations to ensure that aid enters Gaza in an organized and effective manner, addressing all essential needs.

Meanwhile, Minister of Health Khaled Abdel-Ghaffar confirmed that Egypt is ready to provide all vaccines against polio, measles, German measles (Rubella) and mumps in preparation for vaccinating Palestinian children arriving from the Gaza Strip in quarantine at the Rafah border crossing.

The Heath Minister announced that Egypt is ready to receive and treat the wounded Palestinians coming from Gaza after the end of the war.

He added that if entry into the Strip to provide medical services is requested, the Egyptian Ministry of Health is ready with all its medical teams to do so, noting that Egypt has a complete map of all health work sites in Gaza.

Egypt has opened the registration for doctors who wish to volunteer to treat the wounded and injured as a result of the Israeli aggression inside the Gaza Strip, announced Head of the Egyptian Doctors Syndicate Osama Abdel-Hay on Sunday.

The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza said on Saturday that three new Israeli massacres took place in Gaza, raising the number of martyrs to 46,899 hours before the ceasefire deal starts in hours. Meanwhile, the number of the injured people rose to 110,725 Palestinians since the outbreak of the Israel war on the besieged strip.

The Ministry said previously that that a total of 4,500 Palestinians suffer from amputations of upper or lower limbs in the Strip since the beginning of the war, including about 800 children and 540 women.