The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said on Sunday that due to the information received from the Israeli and Egyptian sides on the temporary suspension of the possibility of evacuating foreigners from the Gaza Strip, it is currently impossible for Polish citizens to leave it. To the knowledge of the Polish diplomatic and consular services, approximately 30 Polish citizens are staying there.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasises with indignation that every day of our citizens’ stay in the Gaza Strip puts them at risk of death and brings suffering, especially to children. In our opinion, no circumstances justify the fact that the Poles who have been in the Gaza Strip for three weeks are not allowed to leave, even though the Polish authorities are waiting to receive them on the Egyptian side”, says the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

On 7 October, Israel was attacked by militants from the terrorist Palestinian organisation Hamas. In response, the Israeli military carried out retaliatory operations. The Polish military quickly evacuated over 1,500 Polish citizens and people from other countries from Israel as part of Operation NEON.

“We would like to reiterate that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Polish Embassy in Tel Aviv, Cairo and the Office in Ramallah, has been and continues to be in close and regular official and working contact with the Egyptian and Israeli authorities since the outbreak of the conflict, making every effort to enable Polish citizens residing in the Gaza Strip to evacuate safely and quickly. Representatives of the MSZ also remain in contact with Poles staying in the Gaza Strip”, stressed the Ministry.

Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that appeals to allow Poles to leave Gaza were repeated six times in the form of diplomatic notes and daily in the framework of working contacts with Israeli authorities. As assured, the embassy is acting in this regard not only on its own, but also through local consular cooperation.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński