Scores of foreign passport holders started leaving war-torn Gaza Wednesday after Egypt opened the Rafah crossing for the first time since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, AFP correspondents said.

It was not immediately clear how many people managed to leave via Rafah on Gaza’s southern border with Egypt, but live footage from the scene showed crowds of people entering the Palestinian side of the terminal.

Although more than 200 trucks of desperately-needed aid have crossed into Gaza from Egypt, no people have been allowed to flee the battered enclave, with some 400 foreigners and dual nationals expected to make the crossing on Wednesday.

Foreign governments say there are passport holders from 44 countries, as well as 28 agencies, including UN bodies, living in the Gaza Strip where 2.4 million people have endured more than three weeks of unrelenting Israeli bombardment in response to the October 7 Hamas attacks.

The tiny coastal territory has also suffered “catastrophic” shortages of food, water and electricity following an almost total Israeli blockade in response to the attacks, the worst in Israel’s history, that killed 1,400 people, mostly civilians.

According to the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza, more than 8,500 people have been killed in the bombardments, two-thirds of them women and children.

Separately, Egypt said a first group of 81 seriously sick or wounded Palestinians would be allowed in to Egypt for medical treatment on Wednesday, with television channels close to the Egyptian intelligence services broadcasting live images of a fleet of ambulances entering the terminal.

Palestinian sources said they expected 88 people to be taken across for treatment in Egyptian hospitals.

The decision to open the crossing came hours after an Israeli strike on the largest refugee camp in Gaza, where the health ministry said at least 50 people were killed.

Egypt on Tuesday condemned the strike on Jabalia camp “in the strongest terms”, warning against “the consequences of the continuation of these indiscriminate attacks that target defenceless civilians” in a foreign ministry statement.
 

Taking into account the poor air quality in the national capital, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Wednesday asserted that the next 15-20 days from November 1 would be critical in the context of the air quality index.

Speaking to ANI on the issue, Rai said, “From November 1, the next 15 to 20 days are critical. Scientists are saying that the temperature is dropping and the speed of air has decreased, so pollutants are at a lower level. Yesterday, AQI was nearly 350. Due to the work going on in the 13 hotspots in Delhi, the situation is fairly under control. At some hotspots, vehicle pollution’s contribution is high.”

The Environment Minister further informed that different departments will convene a meeting later in the day to analyze the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP)-II.

“Today there is a meeting of different departments to analyze GRAP-II, which was implemented in all of Delhi. We have asked for reports from different places to know what the sources of local pollution are. We have requested that the state governments send CNG or BS-VI buses from the depot itself. The report released by the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) shows that stubble burning has reduced, but its impact can be seen on Delhi pollution,” the minister added.

Meanwhile, the air quality index in the national capital was recorded at 336 on Wednesday morning bringing the air quality under the ‘very poor’ category for the fourth day in a row and the third straight day this week.

As per the SAFAR-India, the city’s AQI has been in the ‘very poor’ category since Sunday (309).

The AQI was recorded at 322 on Monday and 327 on Tuesday, as per the data provided by the System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR)-India.

Morning walkers of the national capital said that breathing is not as easy as it used to be in the summer months.

“It feels a bit uncomfortable to breathe while running due to pollution now as compared to in the summer months. I face congestion. We need to remain careful and take all precautions,” said a morning walker near Mayur Vihar.

In the Delhi University area and Pusa, the quality of air was recorded as ‘very poor’ with AQI at 391 and 311, respectively at 7 am today.

The quality of air in the IIT Delhi region also remained in the very poor category with an AQI of 329. The quality of air at the Airport (T3) and Mathura Road was also in the very poor category, with an AQI of 339 and 362 respectively.

Meanwhile, Noida recorded an AQI of 391 (very poor) and Gurugram 323 (very poor).

Air Quality Index (AQI) is a tool for effective communication of air quality status to people in terms, which are easy to understand. It transforms complex air quality data of various pollutants into a single number (index value), nomenclature, and colour.

The AQI from 0 to 100 is considered good, while from 100 to 200 it is moderate, from 200 to 300 it is poor, and from 300 to 400 it is said to be very poor and from 400 to 500 or above it is considered as severe.

Last week, Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai said that a 15-point winter action plan is being implemented one by one to curb pollution..

The Delhi Minister added that since one of the major causes of pollution is vehicles, they have started the ‘Red Light on, Gaadi off’ campaign on October 26.

The order, passed by additional chief secretary (home) Sujata Saunik, is spurred by incidents of arson, rioting and protests mostly in the rural parts of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district during the last two days over the ongoing stir by the Marathas demanding reservation for their community.