As Israel escalates its offensive in Gaza, U.S. officials are privately telling some Americans trapped in the region that the government lacks key pieces of information involving ongoing diplomatic negotiations and when it will be safe to exit. In one case, U.S. officials resorted to asking private citizens to use their own influence to improve the situation.
HuffPost reviewed emails and text messages between Biden administration staffers and an American family and their attorney. The communications suggest there is confusion among personnel working on the sensitive issue — a life-or-death matter for the estimated 600 Americans currently in Gaza.
On Oct. 21, the Okal family made their third attempt to leave Gaza through the territory’s southern border with Egypt at an exit point known as the Rafah crossing.
By that point, Abood Okal, his wife, Wafaa Abuzayda, and their 1-year-old son Yousef had spent more than a week sheltering among a group of 40 people at a single-family home…