Brazilians cross Gaza border into Egypt
After a month of agony, a group of 32 individuals made up mostly of Brazilians awaiting repatriation in Gaza managed to cross the border into Egypt through the Rafah Gate. The crossing took place early this morning (Nov. 12), as reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on X social media, at 05:41—Brasília local time. From Rafah, the group will embark on a six-hour road journey to Cairo, where they will spend the night.
The Brazilian Presidential VC2 aircraft is awaiting the group in the Egyptian capital to initiate the tenth repatriation flight since the onset of the Middle East crisis. The departure is scheduled for Monday morning (13). Two individuals from the original list opted out of repatriation and chose to remain in Gaza.
The success of this rescue operation required direct involvement from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and the Brazilian diplomatic corps in negotiations with Israeli, Palestinian, and Egyptian authorities. Upon their return to Brazil, the federal government has organized a reception operation, providing shelter services, documentation assistance, food, psychological support, medical care, and immunization.
Augusto de Arruda Botelho, National Secretary of Justice at the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, mentioned that some returnees have family members in Brazil, while others will be accommodated in a location in São Paulo state, provided by the government.
Throughout their stay in Gaza, the Brazilians received daily support from the diplomatic corps, which ensured essential resources and alerted Israeli authorities to the group's location to prevent potential military attacks in the area. Despite these efforts, buildings near the shelters were bombed.
The group of returnees consists of 22 Brazilians by birth, 7 naturalized Palestinian Brazilians, and 3 Palestinians who are close relatives of Brazilians. In total, there are 17 children, 9 women, and 6 men.
