What happened
Sick and wounded Palestinians have begun leaving Gaza to receive medical treatment after Israel permitted a limited reopening of its key border point with Egypt. Ambulances were allowed to transfer patients out of the territory via the Rafah crossing for the first time in months, offering a narrow lifeline to those requiring urgent care unavailable inside Gaza. Egyptian officials said about 150 people were scheduled to exit yesterday, with a smaller number allowed to enter.

Who said what
Gazan health officials estimate that 20,000 people are seeking permission to leave for treatment, including thousands of children. The World Health Organization has said 900 patients have died while waiting for evacuation. EU diplomat Kaja Kallas called the reopening “concrete and positive”. This is “a symbolic, if halting, step forward in Israel’s ceasefire with Hamas”, said Isabel Kershner and Bilal Shbair in The New York Times.

What next?
Israel has said departures would be tightly restricted and subject to security screening. The reopening is seen as part of efforts to stabilise a fragile ceasefire deal, although only a fraction of those in need are expected to leave each day.

What happened
Cancer patients in England are missing out on innovative forms of treatment on the NHS due to “bureaucratic hurdles”, doctors have warned.

A lack of funding and complex commissioning policies have prevented the stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR) and molecular radiotherapy treatments from having widespread use across the country.

Who said what
Dr Nicky Thorp, vice-president for clinical oncology at the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR), said it was “incredibly frustrating” that a number of innovative cancer treatments exist, but are only in “limited use” in the NHS in England. She said some cancer patients were missing out on treatments that require “fewer doses” and come with “fewer side-effects”.

Despite being a “world leader” in research, UK survival rates “lag behind other comparable countries”, according to Cancer Research UK. Even accounting for different stages of diagnosis, it says there are significant “inequalities in access to treatment”, including SABR.

What next?
The RCR and Radiotherapy UK are calling for Health Secretary Wes Streeting to use the government’s new cancer plan, due to be published this week, to make such treatments widely available.

A “niche but increasingly popular” industry in Japan is helping workers break out of the “salaryman” cycle, according to The Washington Post. For a fee of up to ¥50,000 (£235), dissatisfied employees can hire “proxy quitters” to resign from their job for them.

This rise in proxy quitters has revealed a “darker side of Japan’s work culture” to the rest of the world, said Singapore-based news site CNA. Bosses often have “disproportionate power over employees”, which leads to the expectation of “long hours and unpaid overtime”. Workers are bound by the concept of “messhi hoko” – or “self-sacrifice for the public good” – which is “ingrained” in the Japanese working culture. The expectation to prioritise company needs over personal ones is often cited as one of the culprits for Japan’s declining birth rate. At its most extreme, it can “even be fatal”: the term “karoshi” refers to the phenomenon of “death by overwork”.

Yet evidence suggests that more and more people are defying traditional taboos and choosing to switch jobs, said The Japan Times. According to government data, about 940,000 people switched from one full-time position to another in 2023 compared with 750,000 in 2018.

More labour fluidity has caused Japan’s rigid payment structures to loosen, with salaries catching up with the rest of the world due to workforce demands. Although employers may be bracing for the impact of an influx of young, empowered workers, the change could “inject dynamism into Japan’s ossified institutions”.