(RightWing.org) – Almost a month after Hamas massacred 1,400 Israelis and kidnapped hundreds more, Israeli warplanes are pounding the terrorist group’s refuge in the Gaza Strip. Hundreds of US citizens are unlucky — or unwise — enough to be under their bombs. Now an escape route has opened up and trapped Americans are starting to evacuate to Egypt.
Since Israel began retaliating against Hamas targets in Gaza, President Biden has been trying to negotiate the evacuation of an estimated 400 US citizens who were caught in Gaza when Hamas started the war. It’s complicated by the fact Gaza only has two borders; all the crossing points with Israel are firmly closed, and fighting is going on near most of them, while Egypt is refusing to allow Palestinian refugees into the country.
The situation in Gaza has been dangerous for years — the State Department has been advising Americans not to travel there, as the US has no consulate and can’t help its citizens there. However, some always choose to ignore the advice, and when Hamas attacked on October 7 and Israel sealed the border, they were trapped.
Now, though, Biden has persuaded Cairo to let Americans and other foreigners through the fortified crossing point at Rafah. Initially, he tried to persuade Egypt to accept Palestinians too, but along with Jordan, Israel’s other Arab neighbor, the country is refusing to accept them.
Now Biden has settled for getting Americans, including dual nationals, out. On November 2 he announced that 74 US nationals, all dual citizens, had passed through the Rafah crossing into Egypt. However, there’s no saying how long it will take for the rest to get out.
Movement inside Gaza is becoming increasingly difficult as Israeli ground forces move in on Hamas, and the terrorist group is also trying to keep civilians in place as human shields. The remaining Americans inside the region are still in danger — and until they reach Rafah there’s nothing Biden can do to help them.
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