Today: 4 August 2025
17 December 2023
2 mins read

Palestinian Americans sue Biden administration

The State Department declined to comment on pending litigation but a spokesperson said the department is working to get more Americans and family members out of Gaza….reports Asian Lite News

Two Palestinian American families have sued the Biden administration, claiming the government has not done as much to evacuate their US relatives stuck in Gaza as it did for Israeli dual nationals.

In the days after Hamas’ Oct. 7 assault in southern Israel, the US government organized charter flights from Tel Aviv to Europe to help Americans leave Israel after many airlines canceled service to the country.

The State Department says it has helped around 1,300 US Palestinians leave Gaza and escape Israel’s retaliatory bombardment — in part by coordinating their exit to neighboring Egypt with Israeli and Egyptian authorities.

But the United States has not taken steps to organize dedicated flights or otherwise help secure the exit of an estimated 900 US citizens, residents and family members who remain trapped in Gaza, the American families suing the government say.

They say this violates their constitutional rights.

“There is more that the US government can do and they are choosing not to do it for Palestinians,” Yasmeen Elagha, who has family stuck in Gaza and helped organize the lawsuit, said in an interview.

The State Department declined to comment on pending litigation but a spokesperson said the department is working to get more Americans and family members out of Gaza. The White House referred questions on the lawsuit to the Justice Department, which did not immediately comment.

Hamas militants killed 1,200 people in Israeli border communities with Gaza and took 240 hostage during its Oct. 7 assault, according to Israeli tallies.

Since then, Israeli bombardment has killed nearly 19,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials. According to UN estimates, up to 85 percent of the 2.3 million people in the densely populated enclave have been displaced from their homes.

The lawsuit, filed on Wednesday in US District Court in Indianapolis, accuses the federal government of failing to protect US citizens in an active war zone and denying equal protection to Palestinian Americans, a right under the US Constitution.

The suit seeks to force the government to begin evacuation efforts and secure the safety of its citizens “on equal terms to other noncombatants in the same war zone.”

Two of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Elagha’s cousins, Borak Alagha and Hashem Alagha, US citizens who were studying engineering in the Palestinian coastal enclave.

Americans listed by the United States as wanting to leave Gaza at the Egyptian-controlled Rafah crossing must be approved by both Israel and Egypt.

The three Americans cited in the lawsuit have not been cleared to leave, said Elagha, who lives near Chicago.

Maria Kari, a lawyer with the Arab American Civil Rights League who represents the plaintiffs, said her organization filed about 40 lawsuits in the first month of the conflict on behalf of Palestinian dual nationals.

“We’re simply asking the Biden administration to do something it already did for a class of citizens in the same war,” she said.

ALSO READ: Defence Secretary to Visit Israel, Palestine

Previous Story

Cornered Bibi hints at new Hamas talks

Next Story

‘Stop the fight and start negotiations’

Latest from -Top News

US Mulls Terror Tag for Muslim Brotherhood

The US’ plan to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group comes after a bipartisan bill was introduced by Republican Congressman…reports Asian Lite News The US is once again edging closer

Hamas Sets Terms For Disarmament

HAMAS: ‘The resistance and its weapons will not be abandoned until our full national rights are restored, foremost among which is the establishment of an independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state’ Hamas affirmed

Statehood For Palestine

Analysts see the general move as a deliberate push to revive a stagnant peace process long controlled by Israel, Hamas and the United States, all of whom, they say, have shown little

IBPC Dubai charts new growth path

Former Tata Motors CEO Ravi Kant headlines exclusive event as Indian business council sets course for transformation….reports Asian Lite News The Indian Business & Professional Council (IBPC) Dubai has signalled a significant

Miles in the Malls!

Dubai Mallathon kicks off today – The emirate’s biggest malls transform into indoor fitness arenas, inviting residents to walk, run, and win — all while staying cool, healthy, and community-connected….reports Asian Lite
Go toTop

Don't Miss

MEA clears stand on Palestine

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi says India’s position

There Will Be No Peace Without A Process Of Reconciliation

No one should have the illusion that once a ceasefire