198. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if her Department is aware of evacuations from Gaza on 19 October 2026; if she sought for Ireland to be part of those or for seats on those evacuations; if not, the reason; and if she can still seek to be part of same, or if she can still seek another date in advance of mid-November 2026. [74384/26]

199. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the steps her Department has taken to evacuate the two Palestinian students whose refusals have been overturned; and the provisional plans it has put in place for the evacuation of others who may be successful, in time for them to arrive to start this academic year. [74383/26]

202. Deputy Conor D. McGuinness asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to confirm that the evacuation of Gazan students (details supplied) permitted recently to study in Ireland is taking place on 9 November; and if her Department will allow for the Gazan students awaiting visa decisions to be put on the evacuation list prior to their visa decision. [73992/26]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 198, 199 and 202 together.

Since the start of the Gaza crisis, my Department has facilitated nearly 400 people to exit Gaza and travel to Ireland, including students taking up studies in Ireland’s Higher Education Institutions, some of whom won places on the Ireland-Palestine Scholarship Programme.

My Department coordinates closely with the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, and Irish Higher Education Institutions to facilitate these operations.

On the specific matter raised by Deputy Gibney, we are not aware of an evacuation on 19 October 2026. I am aware of an evacuation from Gaza scheduled to take place on 26 October next. I can confirm that officials from my Department have been in regular contact with the relevant authorities since being informed of this evacuation in an effort to secure places for a number eligible persons to participate. On 15 October 2026, my officials were informed that six places were available to eligible persons for the evacuation on 26 October.

As the Deputies will appreciate, facilitating an exit from Gaza is a complex process, requiring significant pre-planning across multiple organisations and jurisdictions to ensure that, if visa approved, those with the relevant permissions are ready to travel to Ireland.

Any movement from Gaza is also dependent on receipt of several permissions from the relevant authorities, including the Israeli authorities, which set the date for all exits from Gaza, as well as the number of individuals permitted to leave. While every effort is made to secure these permissions, the decision to grant or deny them rests outside the control of the Government of Ireland.

On the matter of the students referred to by Deputies Gibney and McGuinness, I can confirm that one of those students, who had been located in Spain, has already arrived in Ireland. The remaining two students are among the eligible persons identified for the assisted departure, scheduled to take place on 26 October. Subject to the necessary permissions being received, it is expected that they will travel to Ireland to take up places at Irish Higher Education Institutions.

While my Department is relatively limited in the assistance it can provide to non-Irish citizens, I can assure the Deputies that my officials will continue to work with partners to provide support to those with the necessary permissions to travel ahead of any future evacuations from Gaza.