Published 2023-11-09 23.41
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The Foreign Ministry’s consular director stated on Tuesday that he expected the first of the more than 500 Swedes in Gaza to leave the area “soon”.
On Thursday, almost 700 foreign citizens and their relatives were allowed to leave Gaza – but so far no Swede has been allowed to cross the border, the Foreign Ministry says.
“According to the information that the Foreign Ministry has received from local authorities, no Swedes have yet been given permission to leave Gaza. The Foreign Ministry and relevant foreign authorities are following the situation around the border crossing in Rafah very carefully,” the press service writes in an email to TT late on Thursday evening.
The Guardian reports, citing Reuters, that the border crossing in Rafah was open on Thursday, and that 700 foreign nationals and their relatives were able to cross into Egypt.
The border crossing was closed over the weekend but reopened on Monday, according to the Foreign Ministry. On Wednesday, the border was closed again.
Over 500 Swedish citizens or persons with a Swedish residence permit have contacted the Foreign Ministry and asked for help to leave Gaza.
– We expect that Swedes will come out shortly, said Svante Liljegren, head of the consular unit at the Foreign Ministry, to TT on Tuesday.
Several other countries, including Finland, have evacuated citizens from the area since the terror-labeled Hamas attacks on October 7.