Over 10,000 Palestinians in Gaza are in urgent need of medical evacuation, including thousands of children, UN officials have warned ahead of the planned reopening of the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza on Saturday.

Dozens of seriously ill and wounded children from Gaza were taken across the Rafah crossing on Saturday for the first medical evacuation through the border with Egypt since Israel’s military seized control of the area in May.

Thirty-seven sick and wounded Palestinians have left Gaza for medical treatment in Egypt following the reopening of the Rafah border crossing after eight months. The World Health Organization (WHO) said on X that 34 children and three adults,