74 More US Citizens Leave Gaza

Americans with dual citizenship are the latest to leave
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Nov 3, 2023 1:00 AM CDT
74 More Americans Leave Gaza
Secretary of State Antony Blinken talks to reporters prior boarding his aircraft to depart Washington on travel to the Middle East and Asia at Andrews Air Force Base. Md., Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023.   (Jonathan Ernst/Pool via AP)

President Biden said Thursday that 74 US citizens with dual citizenship have left the Gaza Strip, announcing the development as he dispatched his top diplomat to the Middle East for consultation with Israeli and Jordanian leaders concerning the Israel-Hamas war, the AP reports. "We got out today 74 American folks out that are dual citizens," Biden said in a brief exchange with reporters as he hosted Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader for an Oval Office meeting. The White House has previously said some 500 to 600 US citizens had been trapped in Gaza since the start of the Oct. 7 Israel-Hamas war. Since then, the nearly four-week-old conflict continues to rage on with no end in sight.

The administration said earlier this week that five Americans were among dozens of dual citizens who were able to get out of the Strip, where a humanitarian crisis is unfolding. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that the administration was hopeful that additional US citizens would be able to leave Gaza on Thursday and the pace of Americans who want to leave will now move at an accelerated pace. Kirby said Qatar, which maintains lines of communication with Hamas, was particularly helpful in smoothing the way for the Americans to be able to leave Gaza.

Biden made the announcement as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken set off for another frenzied trip to the Middle East. Blinken is returning to the region with a somewhat more nuanced message than he offered in the immediate aftermath of Hamas' bloody attack on Israel and Israel's military response. As he did last month, Blinken will stress US support for Israel and try to prevent a wider Mideast war as he visits Israel and Jordan starting on Friday. But Blinken's agenda this time is more crowded and more complex: "We will be talking about concrete steps that can and should be taken to minimize harm to men, women, and children in Gaza," Blinken told reporters as he departed.

(More Israel-Hamas war stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X