As per the details, the Palestinian students arrived in Pakistan via an international airline from Istanbul and were moved to a local hotel with strict security.
Before arriving in Lahore, the officials of the Embassy of Pakistan in Cairo and representatives of the Al-Khidmat Foundation facilitated the departure of Palestinian students from Cairo International Airport to Lahore.
This batch of students is part of one hundred and ninety-two Palestinian medical students from war-torn Gaza who will continue their medical and dental studies in various medical institutes in Pakistan.
Under the directives of Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, these students will be facilitated to continue their studies in Pakistani medical universities on fully funded programs.
It is worth mentioning here that the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) earlier approved special permission for medical and dental students from Gaza to complete their education in Pakistan.
According to a spokesperson, the decision was made at the request of the Pakistani High Commissioner in London.
The PMDC president said that it is expected that around 100 medical and dental students from Gaza will come to Pakistan.
The students will be adjusted in Pakistani medical and dental colleges, and the committee will ensure the smooth completion of their education, he added.
The approval came after the UN agency supporting Palestinian refugees estimated that a quarter of a million people had been impacted since Israel’s army issued a new evacuation order for parts of southern Gaza a day earlier.
“We’ve seen people moving, families moving, people starting to pack up their belongings and try to leave this area,” UNRWA spokeswoman Louise Wateridge told reporters in Geneva via video link from Gaza.
The agency “estimates that around 250,000 people have been impacted by these orders”, she said, adding: “We expect these numbers to grow”.