A first group of 93 Romanian citizens and their families left the Gaza Strip on November 7 after passing through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt. Another group of 51 Romanians is waiting to leave Gaza, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) said on the morning of November 8.

The Romanians who left Gaza were “picked up from the Rafah border crossing by representatives of the Romanian Embassy in Egypt and were accompanied to Cairo by a mobile team from the Rapid Response Unit of the MAE Crisis Cell,” according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

A plane operated by national airline Tarom will take them to Romania. Along with them, 36 citizens from the Republic of Moldova, who also left the Gaza Strip yesterday, are set to board the plane, according to Digi24. 

Before departing from Cairo, the evacuees may meet with Romanian prime minister Marcel Ciolacu, who is expected to go to Egypt. The PM will travel back to Romania with them, according to sources quoted by News.ro. 

Marcel Ciolacu also traveled to Tel Aviv immediately after the conflict between Israel and Hamas broke out.

The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues its dialogue with Israeli and Egyptian authorities to facilitate the evacuation of other citizens. It emphasized that “the security situation in the region remains complex and volatile, requiring constant adaptation of evacuation plans based on the on-ground factors to ensure the safety of the evacuated individuals.”

radu@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Facebook/Ministerul Afacerilor Externe)