VZCZCXRO0521
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #0044 0061423
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 061423Z JAN 09
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3710
RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 000044 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE AND IPA 
DEPT ALSO FOR CA/OCS/ACS/NESCA 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
 
TAGS: ASEC CASC CVIS KWBG PHUM KPAL IS
 
SUBJECT:  SUCCESSFUL EVACUATION OF AMCITS, FAMILIES FROM GAZA 
 
REF: 08 JERUSALEM 2297 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY.  On January 2, ConGen Jerusalem successfully evacuated 
27 AMCITs and AMCIT family members from Gaza.  The evacuees transited 
through Jordan en route to their final destinations.  Post continues to 
receive calls from additional AMCITs in Gaza seeking assistance in 
leaving. END SUMMARY. 
 
EVACUATION A SUCCESS 
==================== 
 
¶2. (SBU) ConGen Jerusalem, with assistance from Embassy Tel Aviv and 
Embassy Amman, organized the evacuation of 27 AMCITs and AMCIT family 
members from Gaza on January 2.  Of the 34 people who signed up for 
evacuation, seven decided at the last minute not to leave. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Of the 27 people who were evacuated, two held only US 
citizenship, 14 were dual Palestinian-Americans, two were possible dual 
Palestinian-Americans without documentation, three had pending 
immigration applications, and six were family members holding only 
Palestinian citizenship.  Although the Government of Israel (GOI) 
initially was unwilling to permit the evacuation of non-US passport 
holders, in the end, all the names on the list were approved.  The 
Government of Jordan, on an exceptional basis, agreed to permit all 
evacuees entry, even in cases where they possessed expired or invalid 
travel documents. 
 
¶4. (SBU) When Consular staff arrived at the Erez crossing between 
Israel and Gaza, they were ushered immediately into a hardened shelter 
because of incoming missiles (which eventually landed in and around 
Ashkelon, north of Erez in Israel). Because the GOI Foreign Ministry 
had announced the night before that the GOI was permitting the exit 
from Gaza of foreign passport holders, several dozen journalists were 
present covering the departures.  Over 300 people were attempting to 
cross, including 180 Russian nationals and citizens from Norway, 
Turkey, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Belarus, and Denmark. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Despite the chaotic situation at Erez, CONOFFs were able to 
clear the evacuees by 1130 local time and board them on the bus for 
transit to the Allenby Bridge crossing to Jordan.  GOI officials at the 
crossing were helpful in processing the evacuees, and minimal problems 
arose.  The US evacuees were among the first to leave Erez, and crossed 
the border into Jordan at approximately 1600 local time. 
 
LACK OF VALID DOCUMENTS AN ISSUE 
================================ 
 
¶6. (SBU) Many of the evacuees lacked valid documentation.  Eight of the 
16 AMCITs held expired US passports, and many of the Palestinians had 
only expired Palestinian passports, or none at all.  Despite this, all 
were permitted exit from Gaza and entry into Jordan. En route from Gaza 
to Jordan, ConGen personnel assisted those needing US passports in 
completing the forms.  Once evacuees arrived in Jordan, Embassy Amman 
staff assisted them in applying for emergency passports for onward 
travel. The two undocumented possible Palestinian-Americans, both 
minors, were subsequently confirmed to be AMCITs and issued consular 
reports of birth abroad by ConGen Jerusalem, in cooperation with 
Embassy Amman. 
 
COMPLICATED CASES 
================= 
 
¶7. (SBU) While some of the evacuee cases were clear-cut, others were 
complicated because one or both parents were not AMCITs, or only some 
of the children were.  In a particularly difficult case, the legal 
permanent resident father of six children died of cancer in a Gaza 
hospital on December 27.  The mother holds only Palestinian 
citizenship, but four of the six children are AMCITs.  Since the 
fatherQs naturalization was pending and he had apparently filed no 
petitions for his non-citizen family members, the mother is not 
eligible for U.S. immigration.  The oldest child in the family told 
CONOFF that their uncle, the fatherQs brother, was killed in a missile 
strike on December 27 while trying to find an open pharmacy to buy 
medicine for the father.  The mother and six children were successfully 
evacuated on January 2 and are currently in Jordan, where Embassy Amman 
is working to identify options for the family. 
 
¶8. (U) Post continues to collect names of AMCITs seeking to leave Gaza, 
should there be another opportunity for an evacuation. 
 
Walles