Some US citizens to leave Gaza today: Biden on safe passage to Egypt

Seventy-six wounded Palestinians and 335 foreigners or dual-nationals were reportedly allowed to cross from the war-torn Gaza Strip for Egypt on Wednesday.

Updated on: Nov 1, 2023, 22:49:57 IST

By HT News Desk

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US President Joe Biden said some Americans will leave war-torn Gaza on Wednesday following the opening of the Rafah crossing into Egypt.

“Today, thanks to American leadership, we secured safe passage for wounded Palestinians and for foreign nationals to exit Gaza,” the US president said in a social media post on X, formerly Twitter.

“We expect American citizens to exit today, and we expect to see more depart over the coming days,” he added.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of residents and foreigners battered by the Israeli airstrikes escaped Gaza for Egypt in the first evacuations since the war that broke out after an unprecedented attack by Hamas on October 7. Families rushed through the heavily fortified crossing towards Egypt, which said it admitted 335 foreigners or dual nationals and 76 seriously wounded and sick people, reported AFP.

The Palestinian death toll in the ongoing war has reached more than 8,700, according to the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza. In the occupied West Bank, 130 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids. More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, with most of the fatalities recorded in the initial Oct. 7 attack.

Four Italians were among the foreigners who left Gaza on Wednesday, Italy's foreign minister Antonio Tajani said on X, formerly Twitter.

"I just spoke with the first four Italians to leave the Gaza Strip. They are tired but in good health, assisted by the Italian consul in Cairo. We continue to work to get everyone else out," he added.

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HT News Desk
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