Norway has decided to grant time-limited Schengen student visas to ten medical students from Gaza.
These ten students will have the right to enter Norway to be part of an exchange at the University of Oslo and then go back to Gaza and contribute to the healthcare sector, Schengen.News reports.
As the Norwegian authorities explained, the decision to grant student visas to the ten Gaza students was taken after taking into account the current situation in Gaza and the need for professionals.
According to the Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, hundreds of healthcare workers have been killed in Gaza, and it is very difficult for aid organisations to send personnel.
Thus, in an attempt to offer some relief, PM Støre said that these students would be allowed to come to Norway and pursue further studies and ultimately go back and contribute to Gaza’s healthcare sector.
The government has decided that ten medical students will now be allowed to come to Norway to carry out an exchange stay at the University of Oslo. Together with contributions from other countries, this could mean a difference for the healthcare system in Gaza in the long term.
The Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) has been instructed to grant time-limited student visas to the students in question.
As the Prime Minister’s Office explains, one of the Gaza students has already received a residence permit from UDI and the other nine are expected to soon receive it too.
Norway Aims to Inspire Other Countries to Make Similar Contributions, Foreign Minister Said
Commenting on the matter, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Espen Barth Eide said that they aim to inspire the other countries to take a similar decision, too.
At the same time, Minister Eide expressed his concern about the massive need for healthcare workers in Gaza and his hopes that these ten students will be able to contribute in the years that are to come.
In Gaza, there is an enormous need for health workers, and these ten students will be able to contribute in the years to come. On this basis, we have today decided that the students will be granted a residence permit.
The students who will be issued visas and come to Norway are part of the Al-Azhar University in Gaza. This university had to stop offering education due to the current situation. The al-Shifa hospital, where the ten students were doing an internship, has been bombed, leaving them hopeless about their education and future contribution.
