Lula pledges efforts to repatriate more families from Gaza Strip
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva welcomed a group of 32 Brazilians and Palestinians, relatives of Brazilians rescued from the Gaza Strip, at dawn on Tuesday (Nov. 14). The president declared that Brazil would persist in attempting to bring back all those who wish to leave the conflict region, whether they are Brazilians or foreigners with Brazilian relatives.
"We will make every effort within the scope of Brazilian diplomacy to bring back all Brazilians there who want to come to Brazil,” stated the president. Lula also offered the possibility of bringing to the country non-Brazilian relatives and promised to legalize their status in Brazil.
"There are still Brazilians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. As long as there is a list and we can facilitate the evacuation of even one person, we are committed to reaching out to them. No Brazilian will be left stranded there due to any negligence on the part of the government," emphasized Lula.
President Lula, First Lady Janja da Silva, Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira, Justice and Public Security Minister Flávio Dino, Human Rights and Citizenship Minister Silvio Almeida, Health Minister Nísia Trindade, Minister of the government’s Secretariat of Communication Paulo Pimenta, government’s Special Advisor Celso Amorim, and the commanders of the Armed Forces were at the air base in Brasília.
Lula personally welcomed the rescued returnees, greeting one by one at the foot of the plane's stairs. Hasan Habee was the first to disembark. He became known for the various videos he made and sent to the press, with frequent testimonies of the anguish he went through in the Gaza Strip, amid attacks from Israel.
"Good evening. I'd like to thank the president, the federal government, the Brazilian Air Force, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. We were there for 37 days, a lot of suffering. Sometimes we experienced hunger and thirst," said Habee. "What is happening there is a massacre. My daughters were very shocked there. During the first and second weeks we lied [to them]. We used to say that those bombs [dropped by Israel on the Gaza Strip] were from birthday parties, but we couldn't hold it in for long," he said. Hasan Habee went on to urge the president for the swift release of relatives eagerly awaiting inclusion in a second list of Brazilians or their relatives."
"The arrival of this tenth plane here in Brazil is the culmination of very serious work that we owe to many people in the government, the Brazilian Air Force, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who did an exceptional job when he took over the presidency of the UN Security Council," noted President Lula.
The group will stay for at least two days in Brazilian Air Force accommodation in Brasília, receiving psychological , medical care, and immunization. Afterward, some will go to other Brazilian cities to stay with relatives, while others will be sent to a shelter specializing in welcoming refugees in São Paulo state.
