A child from the Gaza Strip seeking medical treatment arrived in Winnipeg on Thursday, supported in part by the Manitoba government, and a federal minister called on other provinces to follow suit.
The 11-year-old Palestinian boy and his mother were greeted at the airport by Prime Minister Wab Kinew, who said the province was already planning to welcome a second child in the coming weeks.
“We have always been a people who rise up in times of conflict, famine and natural disaster to help the innocent,” Kinew said.
Kinew did not name the 11-year-old boy or discuss details of his medical condition, citing privacy concerns. The boy, who arrived in Egypt with his family, suffers from a genetic disease that cannot be fully treated in the region, Kinew said.
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The prime minister gave the boy a small Canadian flag at the airport and spoke with him through an interpreter.
“He misses the other family members he hasn’t seen for over a year now, and he wants to study to be an engineer when he’s older,” Kinew said.
Marc Miller, federal Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, said children from Gaza have come to Canada for medical help, but this is the first time a provincial government has gone all out weight behind this effort.
“In other provinces, private sponsorships or hospitals have stepped in and said, ‘We’ll treat these people,'” Miller said. “It’s a lot easier when a prime minister stands up and says, ‘I’m going to put my name behind this.’
“I think we can do more as a country.”
The child was identified with the help of Doctors Without Borders in Egypt and the federal government conducted an eligibility check.
Non-profit groups in Manitoba stepped up to provide housing for the boy and his mother, Kinew said, and the Islamic Association of Manitoba and other groups offered financial support, groceries and much more.
Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in October 2023, children have been sent from Gaza to Qatar, various European countries and the United States to receive medical treatment.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says there have been more than 110,000 injured during the war. A third of the 46,000 people killed were children.
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