WASHINGTON – President Biden said Wednesday that the Hamas terrorist group has agreed to allow some US citizens to leave the Gaza Strip, as the Israeli military attacks and heavily bombards the Palestinian territories.
The White House would not say how many US citizens were allowed out. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that 400 Americans were “trapped” there.
“Today, thanks to American leadership, we have a safe passage for wounded Palestinians and for foreigners out of Gaza,” Biden tweeted while he was off to Minnesota for an unrelated day trip.
“We expect the American people to come out today, and we expect to see more departing in the coming days,” Biden wrote. “We will not stop working to get Americans out of Gaza.”
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby described the development as a “significant success” but declined to provide specifics while grappling with reporters on Air Force One.
“I wouldn’t go beyond saying a handful of Americans, that’s as specific as I’m going to get today,” Kirby said.
“This is a significant success. It was indeed the focus of the president’s call with [Egyptian] President [Abdel Fattah el-]Side and [Israeli] Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu on Sunday, where this arrangement was discussed in detail.”
President Biden announced that Hamas would allow some Americans trapped in the Gaza Strip to leave. Chris Kleponis – Cnp/dpa via ZUMA Press
Kirby added, “A handful of Americans are expected to depart today and we expect more in the future. The State Department has been in direct communication with Americans and Gazans over the past 24 hours to tell them to prepare to leave and await further instructions .”
Blinken said Tuesday during congressional testimony that there are about 400 Americans stranded in Gaza, plus 600 immediate family members.
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“We have about 400 Americans and their family members, so about 1,000 people who are stuck in Gaza and want to get out. I am focusing on this intensively,” Blinken told the Senate Committee on Appropriations.
Smoke rises from a building in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli airstrike on November 1, 2023. Photo by JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images Palestinians search through the rubble after a strike on the Jabalia refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. AFP via Getty Images
There were also up to 10 US citizens kidnapped by Hamas terrorists and taken to Gaza during the group’s October 7 surprise attack in southern Israel, where at least 32 Americans were among more than 1,400 slaughtered in communities near Gaza.
Hamas released two US citizens kidnapped on Oct. 20. and US officials are skeptical about how many are believed to remain in captivity.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
