11 Sri Lankans who were stranded in Gaza Strip return Sri Lanka

The 11 Sri Lankans who crossed to Egypt from the Gaza Strip arrived in Sri Lanka early this morning (November 05) onboard a flight from Doha in Qatar.

On Thursday (November 02) 17 Sri Lankans who were trapped in the Gaza Strip amidst the Israel-Hamas conflict were permitted to leave Gaza on and enter Egypt via the Rafah border crossing, the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Tel Aviv had confirmed this officially to the Foreign Employment Bureau (SLBFE).

However, 15 of these Sri Lankans were expected to reach Egypt on Thursday (November 02), while two of them will stay in Palestine, SLBFE media spokesman Gamini Senarath said on Thursday (November 02).

Nevertheless, 13 of the 17 Sri Lankans who were permitted to leave Gaza had been placed in an area between the entrance to the Rafah border crossing and Egypt, since the other four persons were not permitted to leave Palestine due to a lack of security.

Later on Friday (November 03), the Representative Office of Sri Lanka in Palestine announced that a group of 11 Sri Lankans had reached Egypt after crossing the Rafah border, and that they were preparing necessary arrangements to facilitate their repatriation.

A team of officials from the Embassy received them at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border and made arrangements to provide transport to Cairo to facilitate their return to Sri Lanka.