Thursday, 8 January 2009Russian diplomats are planning to evacuate a second group of Russian citizens from the Gaza Strip via Jordan by an emergencies ministry plane, the Russian consul in Israel said on Thursday.
A group of over 250 foreign nationals, including at least 30 Russians, is currently moving by busses through Gaza toward the Israeli border where they will be met by diplomats and transported to the Jordanian capital, Amman.
"There are nationals from 17 countries. We are certain that there are Russians among them, but how many we don't know. It will be clear after the last foreigner crosses the border," Vladimir Yukalov said.
Moscow evacuated the first group of 101 Russian citizens from Gaza on January 2, a day before the start of a major Israeli ground offensive against Hamas militants in response to frequent rocket attacks on Israeli territory.
There were at least 250 Russian citizens in the Gaza Strip, most of them wives and children of Palestinians who studied at Russian universities, prior to the evacuation.
According to latest reports, at least 700 Palestinians have been killed, including 215 children and 89 women, and more than 3,000 injured as a result of Israeli airstrikes and ground operations since the beginning of "an all-out war" against Hamas in late December.
Russia said on Wednesday it would continue its efforts in the UN Security Council and across the Middle East to bring about a settlement to the conflict in the Gaza Strip.
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Thursday, 8 January 2009
RIA Novosti
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