WASHINGTON: More than 300 Americans, over 100 Britons and their families have been evacuated from the Gaza Strip, officials said on Sunday.

The evacuation of dual nationals, carried out in recent days, was the result of “pretty intensive negotiations with all sides relevant to this conflict,” White House deputy national security adviser Jonathan Finer told CBS News.

Despite these efforts, the United States believes there are still “a number” of Americans inside Gaza, he added. “This is obviously a major priority and one that we’re going to continue to work out until every American who wants to leave is able to do so,” Finer said.

The Rafah border crossing from Gaza to Egypt opened up on Wednesday after weeks of unrest, allowing a trickle of wounded Palestinians and people with dual nationality to leave, all desperate to escape Israel’s bombardment.

UK’s Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden hopes more nationals will be able to leave, as he urged the reopening of the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

“Over 100 UK nationals were able to cross out of Gaza into Egypt through the Rafah crossing. It is very disappointing that the crossing was closed yesterday,” Dowden told the BBC.

“We are engaging very closely and we’re hopeful that the crossing will reopen again today enabling further UK nationals to leave.” Britain has urged humanitarian pauses in Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, but has not called for a “full ceasefire”.

Asked about comments by interior minister Suella Braverman that pro-Palestinian protests in London were “hate marches”, he said that there had been hateful conduct in some slogans that had been chanted, especially ones that can be interpreted as “denying the right of Israel to exist.”

“What the other people attending those marches need to ask themselves is: are they inadvertently standing alongside those people that are preaching hate,” he said.

Dowden added he had “grave concerns” over whether it was appropriate for more marches to take place next weekend, when commemorations for Armistice Day — the anniversary of the end of World War I — are also planned.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2023