THAILAND currently stands as the second foreign country with the highest number of casualties in Israel after the United States.
Families continue to plead for the freedom of their loved ones taken captive by the Palestinian militant group as the war between the two sides intensifies.
According to Thavisin, the government’s urgent priority is the repatriation of Thais who have requested to return home.
He urged any commercial airlines with available aircraft to contact Thailand’s Foreign Affairs Ministry to help with evacuation.
As of Saturday, the number of Thai nationals who have died from the escalating war increased to 24 while the number of injured is now at 16.
Meanwhile, 41 Thais have returned to the country on Thursday, with several of them sharing their harrowing tales of survival before getting reunited with their families.
The surprise attack launched by Hamas last week triggered a surge of reactions and sparked worry among governments in Asia, ranging from India to Thailand.
In just a few days, a humanitarian crisis unfolded in Gaza after Israel launched a counterattack and declared a complete siege of the enclave, pounding it with airstrikes in response to the brutal attack initiated by the Palestinian militant group.
On Friday, Palestinians were seen fleeing in a mass exodus from northern Gaza after Israel’s military ordered some one million people to evacuate to the southern part of the besieged territory ahead of an expected ground invasion.
The foreign affairs ministry said that about 200 Thais can be evacuated per day, adding that it will take a month to repatriate all 6,000 Thai workers who have volunteered to go home.
