Gaza families make urgent call for detail on children’s medical evacuation scheme

However they are asking for more detail about how the scheme will work, including for their families.They have also asked the government to involve the organisation supporting them, Children Not Numbers, in discussions about the scheme’s set up and operation.

After the government received a pre-action protocol letter from Leigh Day on behalf of three critically ill children who require urgent evacuation from Gaza, it moved quickly to announce the evacuation of children in need of medical treatment.

The pre action protocol letter challenged the Government’s failure to set up a scheme to medically evacuate Gazan children to date. It noted that the only existing potential option for critically ill Gazan children is privately funded evacuation and medical care in the UK which is not realistically available to many children who require treatment, including the children represented by Leigh Day. Only three children have been evacuated to the UK so far.  In its response to the threatened legal action, the Government’s lawyers confirmed earlier indications to the media that there will be a medical evacuation scheme and made clear that urgent work is being undertaken to set it up.  

Leigh Day lawyers acting for two-year old child Y and five-year old children S and S have since welcomed the introduction of a scheme to evacuate more children from Gaza who need urgent medical treatment in a response letter to the Government.

They have also requested confirmation as soon as possible of the timeframe for and details of the proposed scheme, asking for clarification of whether the three children represented by Leigh Day will automatically be considered for evacuation under that scheme or whether a request will need to be made.

The letter adds that Children Not Numbers has considerable institutional knowledge and experience to offer in relation to the arrangements for any evacuation scheme and would be more than willing to help the government in setting up its evacuation scheme.

The three Gazan children are represented by Leigh Day solicitors Carolin Ott and Tessa Gregory who have instructed Raza Husain KC and Eleanor Mitchell of Matrix Chambers. 

Leigh Day solicitor Carolin Ott said: 

"Our clients are relieved that in response to their challenge the Government has recognised the urgency of the situation and is setting up a much-needed scheme to evacuate seriously ill children from Gaza. However, our clients now need to know the details of the scheme, when it will start, how it will work, and whether it will apply to them. With each passing day, our clients’ condition continues to deteriorate. Their plea to the UK government is to act as quickly as possible to confirm that they will be considered under the scheme and to engage with Children Not Numbers, the organisation supporting them.”

Kate Takes, solicitor on the Children Not Numbers legal team said:

"Further confirmation that the UK government is in the process of planning a medical evacuation pathway for sick and injured children from Gaza is both welcome and a relief. The most pressing thing now is for the government to implement this pathway at an urgent pace: we know these matters can be implemented quickly, as quite rightly seen when some Ukrainian children were bought to the UK for medical treatment within a month of the conflict starting in February 2022.

"The medical condition of these three children is extremely critical; their chance of a successful prognosis deteriorates every day they are unable to access treatment and like many children in Gaza, they need urgent action and medical evacuation from Gaza now. Our medical teams, comprising of paediatric colleagues in Gaza and international medics and specialists, including those working in the NHS, continually assess and triage all children that we support and we know the UK has the medical expertise to treat them. We call on and stand ready to work closely with the government to provide our insights and experience of medical evacuations from Gaza and to assist in the urgent implementation of what will be lifesaving medical evacuations to the UK."