About 80,000 Palestinians who left Gaza during Israel’s war are seeking to return, an official says.

An estimated 22,000 wounded and sick people are also “in dire need” of leaving the Gaza Strip for treatment abroad, Ismail al-Thawabta, director of Gaza’s Government Media Office, told Al Jazeera.

“We are closely monitoring what is happening at the Rafah crossing, and several parties will be overseeing traffic at the crossing,” al-Thawabta said.