Israel, Egypt agree to let American citizens leave Gaza, says US

A US official said on Saturday (Oct 14) that Israel and Egypt agreed to let American citizens leave the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing during the day. Speaking to the news agency AFP, the official said the two countries agreed to keep the sole crossing from Gaza to Egypt open from 12.00 pm to 5.00 pm (9.00-14.00 GMT). The official pointed out that Washington did not have a confirmation that the agreement was being implemented, but the intention was to have it open.

The official said that around 500-600 American citizens in the Gaza Strip reached out for information on leaving the territory. The official did not know if other foreign nationals were able to leave the territory.

Qatar has also been involved in the agreement by leaning on Hamas, with which the Gulf nation has close ties, to allow movement, the official further told AFP.

Blinken calls on Israel to limit Palestinian civilian deaths

On Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on Israel to limit Palestinian civilian deaths by taking every possible precaution. "We recognise many Palestinian families in Gaza are suffering through no fault of their own and that Palestinian civilians have lost their lives," Blinken told a news conference in Qatar.

However, he said that Israel was within its rights after the "unconscionable" attacks by Hamas. "What Israel is doing is not retaliation. What Israel is doing is defending the lives of its people," Blinken further said.

"Any country, faced with what Israel has suffered, would likely do the same thing," the US secretary of state added. He praised Qatar for showing urgency in efforts to persuade Hamas militants to free Israeli hostages.

But he warned Qatar about its strong ties with Hamas.

Qatar's Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, however, defended the Hamas office, saying it served the purpose of communication.

(With inputs from agencies)

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