Mass. family crossed border from Gaza into Egypt

A Massachusetts family who had been trapped in Gaza since the war between Israel and Hamas began is now in Egypt. The couple and their child crossed the border Thursday morning.

After they left Gaza, Wafaa Abuzayda messaged WBUR at 9:30 a.m. EST to say her family was en route to Cairo.

"They're obviously very happy right now," said Boston attorney Sammy Nabulsi. "They're exhausted and they're emotionally and physically drained. They're also worried about the family they left behind in Gaza."

Abuzayda, her husband Abood Okal, and their 1-year-old son, Yousef, had entered Gaza in September to visit relatives. They were scheduled to leave on Oct. 13, but were unable to depart since the had war started. On that day, they fled northern Gaza for the south near the Rafah border because Israel ordered a civilian evacuation.

Over the past few weeks, via audio messages to WBUR, they have discussed the difficulty in finding food and water and the terror of constant airstrikes and explosions.

"We basically went to sleep not knowing if we would wake up in the morning," Abood Okal said in an audio message last weekend.

The American family were among a group of foreign nationals allowed to leave Gaza this week. Nabulsi said the family's travel arrangements back to Massachusetts are still being made.

In a statement Nabulsi issued on the family's behalf, he said they are asking for privacy until they return to Massachusetts, and they hope other American citizens and their families will be able to leave Gaza.

"I'm so happy for these guys," Nabulsi said. "It shouldn't have taken this long, but I'm just so glad we were able to get them out in time. I really am."

WBUR first spoke with Okal on Oct. 12 when he was still in northern Gaza, contacting U.S. officials about how to leave. He had heard that the Rafah border was closed.

"We have contacted both the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem as well as in Cairo that if they could just confirm for us, as U.S. citizens, that we could cross the border from Gaza into Egypt, not asking for safe passage we just want a confirmation that if we make that one- hour trip from north of Gaza Strip where we are down south to the border that we would be able to cross," Okal said in a radio interview.

The same day Abuzayda told WBUR what was supposed to be a family vacation had turned into "a nightmare." She said the bombings were constant and the family didn't know how to protect themselves.

"I don't know what to say," Abuzayda said. "We think this is safe but to be honest nothing in Gaza is safe. Nothing. If you're in Gaza you are not safe. Oh my god, I don't know if you can [hear] the sounds. It's the bombing."

The situation got worse as the war ramped up. When Israel ordered Palestinians to evacuate the northern Gaza as it prepared for a ground invasion, the family fled south. In an audio message sent shortly after that move, Okal said the U.S. State Department informed them they might be allowed to cross the border.

"We've attempted to go to the crossing with Egypt three times to exit based on instructions from the State Department, phone call and email communications," Okal said in the message. "We've done so only to spend 8 to 10 hours at the crossing with no actual movement of anyone actually leaving Gaza and no actual follow up from the State Department."

At the time the U.S. State Department said it was negotiating the departure of Americans in Gaza. It said the border crossing might open at any time and might not stay open for long. In audio message sent 10 days after the family fled to southern Gaza, Okal said they were living in a home with 40 other people and the airstrikes were increasing.

"We've been trying to stay strong but it hasn't been easy," Okal said in that message. "Airstrikes have intensified the last few days, especially last night. It's become constant, all night and most of the day."

Their supplies were dwindling, Okal said. There was little fuel, they waited in line for hours for bread, they ran out of milk for their son and the toddler developed an ear infection. Getting water was a priority, Okal said in an audio message on Oct. 29.

"Our biggest problem remains to be the drinking water, as it is for many people in Gaza," Okal said. "We are almost out of water today I think we have enough to last us today and tomorrow we would be basically out."

The sounds of bombings and drones could often be heard under his messages where he recounted waiting hours in line for bread or getting water from a truck driving through Gaza — with a limit of one gallon per day for the 40 people living in the home.

Throughout the ordeal, Nabulsi, the family's friend and attorney, emailed U.S. officials and the media. He believes it helped them escape Gaza.

"Unfortunately, I can't help but believe that the administration and the State Department did not make this a priority until we made noise about it, until we told the story," Nabulsi said.

In an emailed statement Thursday, the U.S. State Department said it is continuing efforts to get more Americans out of Gaza.

"We continue to work towards safe passage for more U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, and family members in the coming days," the statement said.

U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, of Massachusetts, said she is relieved to learn the family safely crossed the border into Egypt.

"They should never have been put through this terrifying ordeal and I pray for every family trapped in Gaza who fears for their babies’ survival."

In a statement, she said her office was in close contact with the family to provide guidance from the State Department and White House on evacuating.

“While I can breathe a sigh of relief that the Okal family and others are safe, too many families still wait with bated breath. Hundreds of other Americans remain trapped in Gaza and we cannot leave them behind," the statement said.

Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey also expressed relief at the family's exit from Gaza.

“We will continue pushing to accelerate humanitarian assistance for civilians in Gaza and supporting American citizens, including our Massachusetts constituents, who seek to leave Israel and Gaza to immediately return home,” they said in a joint statement.