WASHINGTON – President Biden said on Friday that US citizens still in the Gaza Strip are “going home” – hours after Israeli forces laid siege to Gaza City in its fight against the Hamas terrorist group.
“They’re coming home,” Biden told reporters during a group photo with Western Hemisphere leaders at the White House, even as hundreds of Americans remained in the war zone.
Hamas allowed 74 Americans to leave through Egypt on Thursday after an initial group of five was removed on Wednesday, US officials said. It’s unclear how many additional releases may have occurred since then.
About 400 US citizens and 600 of their relatives are trapped in Gaza, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told lawmakers Tuesday.
Israel heavily bombed the densely populated area of more than 2 million people in a campaign to drive Hamas from power after the Oct. 7 attacks on communities across southern Israel, which killed more than 1,400 people — including at least 33 Americans.
We welcome with gratitude the first group of Americans who have been able to leave Gaza safely through the Rafah border crossing. Thanks to the Egyptian authorities for their cooperation in ensuring the safe and secure transfer of Americans to Egypt and then… pic.twitter.com/oYxxd424TF
— US Embassy Cairo (@USEmbassyCairo) November 3, 2023
Although Israel had warned civilians before its ground invasion to leave the northern half of the territory, including Gaza City, many did not.
Biden on Thursday described US citizens who have left Gaza as “dual citizens.”
“They’re going home,” Biden told reporters during a group photo with Western Hemisphere leaders at the White House.Getty Images
On Friday morning, the US embassy in Cairo captioned a photo of a woman and two children: “We welcome with gratitude the first group of Americans who have safely left Gaza through the Rafah border crossing.”
Hamas is holding up to 10 additional US citizens abducted from southern Israel, the White House said – although the exact number remains unclear.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
