First Gazans emigrate since Trump announced relocation plan

Two charter planes relocate Gaza civilians to Europe via Israel in first instance of Gazans leaving the Gaza Strip under Trump plan with Israel’s assistance.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

Dozens of Palestinian Arabs residing in the Gaza Strip departed the coastal enclave Wednesday, relocating to Europe in what appears to be the first instance of Gazans emigrating from the Strip under the Trump plan.

Two charter flights, one operated by the Romanian air force and the second by the Italian air force, departed from Ramon International Airport in southern Israel.

According to reports by Israel’s Channel 14 and the Israel Hayom newspaper, the charter flights carried a total of 70 Gazans migrating from the Gaza Strip to Italy and Romania.

The Gazans likely either carry European Union passports or were sponsored by relatives already living in the host countries, Israel Hayom reported.

The Israeli defense ministry, which is working to establish a mechanism to facilitate mass migration from the Gaza Strip, reportedly helped arrange the transportation of the 70 Gaza migrants out of the Strip and through 110 miles of Israeli territory to the Ramon Airport.

Wednesday’s flights may also mark the first instance of Gazans emigrating out of the Gaza Strip under the plan first announced by President Donald Trump on February 4th.

Under the Trump plan, the entire Gaza population of roughly two million people will be permanently resettled outside of the Strip and the coastal enclave given over the U.S.

The flights come a day after the IDF renewed large-scale military operations against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, starting with an air campaign striking dozens of terrorist positions across Gaza.

According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, over 400 people died in the first day of the renewed Israeli offensive.