Italian operation brings number of students evacuated from Gaza to 229.
Italy received 59 Palestinian students who landed in Rome on Tuesday aboard a flight from Amman as part of an ongoing effort to provide safe passage for young Palestinians to continue their studies at Italian universities.
The students from Gaza were greeted at Rome’s Fiumicino airport by deputy premier and foreign minister Antonio Tajani and universities minister Anna Maria Bernini.
A further 13 Palestinian students will arrive separately in Milan on Wednesday, bringing the total from this latest operation to 72.
The arrivals form part of the IUPALS programme – Italian Universities for Palestinian Students – run jointly by the Conference of Italian University Rectors, the foreign ministry, and the ministry of universities and research.
The operations are coordinated by the Farnesina – Italy’s foreign ministry – with the embassies in Tel Aviv and Amman and the consulate general in Jerusalem, in coordination with the Jordanian and Israeli authorities.
Con l’operazione di oggi sono 230 gli studenti palestinesi arrivati dalla Striscia di Gaza attraverso i “corridoi universitari” facilitati dal nostro Governo. Giovani ragazze e ragazzi che nonostante la guerra non hanno mai smesso di credere nel loro futuro. Studenti che potranno… pic.twitter.com/YlqX6mR6aD
— Antonio Tajani (@Antonio_Tajani) May 12, 2026
The 72 students will be distributed across 21 Italian universities and the University of San Marino which will welcome two.
The University of Milan will receive 10 students, nine will go to Sassari, eight to Cagliari, and seven to Bologna, with others placed at public and private institutions across the country.
“With this new university corridor, we continue to offer young Palestinians a concrete opportunity for a future, education and security” – Tajani stated – “Italy reaffirms its humanitarian commitment to the civilian population of Gaza and its support for the right to education, even in the dramatic context of the Strip.”
The students left Gaza via the Israeli Kerem Shalom crossing before being transferred to Jordan, where they were hosted at the Italian Hospital in Amman ahead of their departure for Italy.
The operation brings the total number of students evacuated from Gaza since September 2025 to 229. A previous 157 students had been transferred across four separate operations between September and December last year.
The University Corridors initiative is part of the broader Italian humanitarian commitment to support the civilian population in the Gaza Strip, under the Food for Gaza programme structured around humanitarian aid, healthcare and educational efforts.
Photo Farnesina
