AL-ARISH, ENROUTE GAZA: Emirati medical relief teams, volunteers and members of the UAE Armed Forces and Air Force continue to provide all forms of support to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, even as a military relief plane carrying tons of medicines, foodstuffs and humanitarian relief materials arrived at Al-Arish Airport in Egyptian Sinai, enroute Gaza, today.
The relief is part of The Gallant Knight 3 Operation that is being undertaken on the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE.
As Sultan Al Shamsi, UAE’s Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Developmental Affairs and International Organisations, said at a media briefing in Al Arish: “Under the directives of our wise leadership, The Gallant Knight 3 initiative continues to support the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, especially in the health and medical sector. We connect hospitals, health centres and medical pick-ups and provide medicines, medical devices and tools in Gaza. We also cater to physical therapy and psychological rehabilitation needs of children, women and the elderly. Despite the situation on the ground, we continue to carry out our humanitarian operations to the injured and wounded.”
He said, “Until today, we have supplied 344 tons of materials, including medicines, devices, medical supplies and intensive care units, in addition to 10 ambulances.”
Dr. Sultan Al Kaabi, Director of the Emirati Field Hospital, said, “The total number of cases received by the Emirati Field Hospital has been over 49,000 from various areas in the Gaza Strip. They have included men, women and children. More than 1,700 surgical operations have been performed amid difficult conditions. As many as 43,000 cases of infection have also been treated.”
The UAE has been providing relief since the very beginning of the conflict. This has included financial support, food and medical assistance, setting up hospitals and healthcare facilities, and establishing essential services such as water desalination plants and bakeries. These efforts are conducted through an integrated logistical approach via land, sea and air routes, in collaboration with several countries and international institutions, he said.
UAE’s most prominent efforts
Medical services
Dr Ahmed Mubarak Humaid, Medical Director of the Emirates Floating Hospital, said “The UAE set up a floating hospital off the coast of Arish city with 100 beds. Its “star link” service enables urgent medical consultations in the field hospital through visual communication technology, saving the lives of many patients with severe injuries or health needs.”
The fully equipped floating hospital so far has received 2,440 cases and performed 836 surgeries. It supports and complements the Emirati Field Hospital in Gaza. The hospital is equipped with a helipad and marine boats to enhance the response to emergency and critical cases requiring urgent medical intervention.
The UAE’s field hospital in southern Gaza comprises more than 100 doctors, nurses, pharmacists and laboratory technicians.
The hospital has treated 20,783 cases since its launch on December 2, 2023. The hospital has a capacity of 200 beds and includes surgical operating theatres equipped to perform various types of surgeries including general, pediatric and vascular surgeries. It has intensive care units for adults and children, an anesthesia department and specialised clinics covering internal medicine, dentistry, orthopedics, psychiatry, family medicine, pediatrics, and gynaecology, along with supporting medical services. It also has a centre for fitting prosthetic limbs.
Over 1,000 Palestinian children who have been injured and 1,000 cancer patients from Gaza have received treatment so far in UAE hospitals.
The Emirates Humanitarian City also puts up patients who do not need immediate admission with all necessary facilities. Their families also accompany them.
To date, more than 1,500 children and their companions have been transported from Al-Arish Airport to Abu Dhabi International Airport on 17 flights, using either a special medical airplane equipped by relevant health authorities or passenger planes provided by Etihad Airways.
Food and water supplies
The UAE, in partnership with the American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA), has pledged the delivery of 400 tons of food relief for northern Gaza Strip, meeting the urgent basic needs of approximately 120,000 people. Seven aid-ships have been docked at Al-Arish port, carrying 13,190 tons of relief supplies in preparation for their entry into Gaza.
Five automatic bakeries were set up to meet the daily needs of more than 72,000 people. IN addition, the UAE supplied flour to eight existing bakeries in Gaza for 17,140 people.
As much as 33,100 tons of urgent supplies were also transported and delivered to the Gaza Strip via seven ships, 1,243 trucks and 329 air flights, including 50 air drops, earlier.
Six water desalination stations with a total capacity of 1.2 million gallons per day have been set up by the UAE to benefit more than 600,000 people in Gaza. Sea water is drawn from 12 coastal wells, desalinated, and stored in two tanks with a total capacity of approximately 320,000 gallons. The water is then pumped to the residents of Gaza through a 10-inch diameter water pipeline from the desalination plant in Rafah, Egypt, extending 3,200 meters into Gaza. Additionally, water is distributed via tanker trucks to shelters in Gaza.
The stations consist of two containers: One housing a 350KW generator to operate the station, which is equipped with sand filters and accessories to purify the water. The second has a high-pressure pump and membrane filters that removes salt from the water. Additionally, three water pumps with a total pumping capacity of 50,000 gallons per hour deliver water through pipes to Gaza.
Financial aid
The UAE has allocated $20 million in response to the challenging humanitarian circumstances faced by Palestinian people, to support the efforts of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). It has also earmarked $5 million to support the UN
Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator efforts in Gaza. As much as $11.7 million has been allocated through the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives to provide food relief in Gaza in collaboration with the World Food Programme. An additional $10million has been allocated to support the health sector in Gaza, especially for services directed at children, in cooperation with the World Health Organisation. Also, $15 million has been allocated to support the Amalthea Fund, launched by Cyprus to support the Maritime Corridor that increases capacity for the flow of humanitarian aid.
Other campaigns
The UAE’s “Tarahum for Gaza” humanitarian aid campaign has provided more than 71,000 relief packages with the participation of 24,000 volunteers and 20 humanitarian organisations.
The UAE’s “Birds of Goodness” operation has executed its 50th airdrop of food and relief supplies, totalling 3,382 tons since the operation began.
