More than 300 foreign nationals, mostly dual citizens, and dozens of injured Palestinians were allowed out of Gaza on Wednesday for the first time since the Israel-Hamas war began.
The refugees were allowed to move through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt.
More than 80 wounded Palestinians were allowed to cross, though at least 10 of them reportedly died from their injuries.
Americans were also among those allowed to leave on Wednesday, said John Kirby, White House national security spokesperson.
“This is an important first step in a process that we expect to see continue over the coming days,” Kirby told reporters, calling it a “significant breakthrough.”
The crossings were opened after negotiations between the U.S., Israel and Egypt, according to Kirby.
Israel has moved troops into northern and central Gaza, in what appears to be a slow-moving encirclement of Gaza City, the main urban population center in the coastal territory.
The ground offensive comes amid a relentless Israeli bombing campaign of Gaza that has killed thousands.
The Israel Defense Forces claimed to have struck hundreds of targets this week, including in northern Gaza’s Jabaliya.
Jabaliya is a terrorist stronghold, according to Israel, and it said the strikes killed 50 “terrorists,” including a senior Hamas militant who organized attacks on Israel last month.
But Jabaliya was also a refugee camp.
The United Nations Human Rights office said it has “serious concerns” the Jabaliya strikes could indicate a war crime.
Read the full coverage of the war at The Hill.
