Interior Minister Moshe Arbel on Monday stated that the initiative to evacuate civilians from the Gaza Strip is ongoing and 16 evacuation flights have already departed from Israel’s Ramon Airport. “Over 16 flights have already departed from Ramon Airport – this will increase in the near future,” Arabel said at a conference. Last month, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu ordered the Mossad to locate countries willing to accept large numbers of Gazan residents. Israel has already begun discussions on the initiative with several countries, including Indonesia, Somalia, and South Sudan. (YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)