\n<\/p>\n
British people and other foreign nationals who have fled Gaza only have 72 hours – three days – in Egypt before they need to leave.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of foreign nationals were evacuated from Gaza into Egypt through the Rafah Crossing on Friday.<\/p>\n
The border was then closed all weekend.<\/p>\n
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) said: “We remain in contact with British nationals in the region to provide them with the latest information.”<\/p>\n
It added in a statement that it was “using all diplomatic channels to press for the crossing to reopen in coordination with our international partners”.<\/p>\n
Nasser Alshanti, an academic from Manchester, told BBC News his pregnant daughter Yosra is effectively “stuck” in Egypt because her husband isn’t a British citizen, and are worried they won’t be able to leave before the three days are up.<\/p>\n
Yosra was raised in the UK and moved to Gaza for university in 2015, where she met – and then married – Ibrahim. The couple had lived in central Gaza since then, until they had to flee in the first week of the war when their neighbourhood was bombed.<\/p>\n
They were evacuated from Gaza into Egypt via the southern border crossing at Rafah at the end of last week, and are now in Cairo.<\/p>\n
Because Ibrahim is not a British national, they now need to apply for a Family Visa for him before they can travel to the UK.<\/p>\n
But the 72-hour deadline in Egypt means they are worried about overstaying if they don’t get a visa in time. Under current rules, overstaying would mean having to pay a fine, which could be greater the longer they stay.<\/p>\n
“I thought they would give him an emergency visa or something, a very quick visa just to evacuate them from Cairo before the end of the 72 hours,” Dr Alshanti said.<\/p>\n
A British Family Visa application submitted outside the UK normally takes up to six months to process.<\/p>\n
The FCDO and Home Office are working together to approve visas for non-British family members of British people who’ve been evacuated from Gaza, with a sped-up process that they expect to be much quicker than usual. However, it’s not yet known how long this will take.<\/p>\n
Dr Alshanti said that sheltering in Gaza in the last few weeks, and now the stress of being in limbo in Egypt, has taken its toll on his daughter.<\/p>\n
“I’ve just done a video call with her,” he said. “You can tell from her face how much weight she’s lost. The last time I saw Yosra was in August, which was just three months ago – but she’s totally different. You can see how her eyes [are sunken] and her face is quite pale.<\/p>\n
“For a heavily pregnant lady, after three weeks in a shelter with a small amount of food and water and no electricity – what do you expect?”<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n