Paediatricians urge medical evacuations from Gaza
At a parliamentary meeting, experts again called for care in the Netherlands alongside aid in the region.
The Dutch Association for Paediatrics continues to argue that seriously ill children from Gaza should be treated in the Netherlands. The association repeated that position on Thursday during a round-table discussion in the Lower House (Tweede Kamer) on medical capacity in Gaza and neighbouring countries.
The Lower House Committee for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation discussed on Thursday the options for evacuating children from Gaza. The discussion was prompted by continuing shortages of specialist care in Gaza and the question of how the Netherlands can contribute in practical terms.
For now, the cabinet is focusing mainly on care in the region. On 18 September, it made €12 million available for medical assistance to sick children from Gaza. Of that amount, €6 million is intended to have almost 250 children treated in Jordan. Funds are also going to patients who have already been evacuated to Egypt and to strengthening healthcare in Gaza and the West Bank.
According to the cabinet, this approach is in line with WHO advice. Treatment in the region keeps patients closer to their families and in their familiar language and culture. At the same time, the Netherlands says it will continue to examine the conditions under which further evacuations to Dutch hospitals might be possible.
An earlier evacuation to the Netherlands, in October 2025, involved five children and their accompanying adults. In a letter to the Lower House, the cabinet wrote that the operation went well medically, but that there had been problems with accommodation, the division of responsibilities and central coordination. The cabinet also pointed to the long-term consequences for healthcare, housing, education and possible asylum procedures.
Dutch paediatricians believe that practical objections should not automatically mean that patients with complex care needs are left out of consideration. They point out that Dutch hospitals have the expertise and capacity for treatments that are not always available in Gaza or the region. The precise extent of that capacity and the selection of patients are subject to further assessment.
The WHO describes the evacuations as a complicated process in which local doctors register patients, the organisation coordinates medical files and receiving countries must give permission. Security clearances and safe transport are also required afterwards. The parliamentary meeting did not immediately change the cabinet’s decision, but it keeps the political and medical debate about providing care in the Netherlands firmly open.
One story, several perspectives
What is established
- The Netherlands is funding medical care for children from Gaza in Jordan.
- Subject to certain conditions, the cabinet is also examining evacuations to the Netherlands.
- Dutch paediatricians are calling for patients with complex care needs to be accommodated.
- An earlier evacuation to the Netherlands also highlighted long-term issues surrounding accommodation and coordination.
Left
Arguments The Netherlands has specialised care available and should use it for patients who cannot receive that care in Gaza or the region. Humanitarian responsibility should carry more weight than administrative caution.
Values International solidarity, equal access to healthcare and the protection of children.
Consequences Providing care in the Netherlands can offer life-saving treatment directly, but it requires capacity, support and long-term assistance.
Centre
Arguments The Netherlands should provide help where it has the greatest effect and assess for each patient which location is medically and practically responsible. Regional care and limited evacuations can coexist.
Values Carefulness, feasibility, cooperation and continuity of care.
Consequences A mixed approach could help more patients, but it requires clear selection criteria and a single person or organisation responsible for coordination.
Right
Arguments The government must prevent temporary medical assistance from unintentionally developing into a permanent accommodation scheme outside existing frameworks. Aid in the region can reach more people and place less pressure on Dutch healthcare and accommodation.
Values Manageability, equal rules and national responsibility.
Consequences Regional accommodation may be more efficient, but there is a risk that patients with very complex care needs will still not be treated there.
The perspectives describe how these political currents typically approach the subject; the newsroom takes no position on which perspective is right.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The central facts can be found directly in parliamentary documents, government information and information from the paediatricians’ association. Claims about medical capacity are attributed to experts involved and are not presented as established facts.
- confirmed The cabinet made €12 million available for medical assistance to sick children from Gaza. — Mentioned in the cabinet’s announcement of 18 September 2026. source
- confirmed Almost 250 children will be treated in Jordan with Dutch support. — The cabinet links €6 million to this expected capacity. source
- confirmed Five children were evacuated to the Netherlands in October 2025. — Mentioned in the parliamentary letter about the earlier evacuation. source
- confirmed The Lower House discussed medical evacuations from Gaza on 24 September. — The parliamentary agenda lists the round-table discussion and the subject. source
Editor's note
The parliamentary meeting, the cabinet’s decision and the earlier evacuation are well documented. The current medical capacity and the precise outcome of the discussions have not yet been definitively established.Sources
- Rondetafelgesprek over zorg voor kinderen in Gaza — Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal
- Kabinet biedt 250 zieke kinderen uit Gaza medische hulp in Jordanië — Rijksoverheid
- Medische evacuaties uit Gaza naar Nederland — Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal
- Tweede Kamer dringt aan op onderzoek naar hervatting medische evacuaties Gaza — Nederlandse Vereniging voor Kindergeneeskunde
More on this in Dutch media
- AD — „gaza medische evacuatie”
- de Volkskrant — „gaza medische evacuatie”
- RTL Nieuws — „gaza medische evacuatie”