US advises citizens in Gaza to move closer to Egypt's Rafah crossing

The US government on Saturday advised its citizens in Gaza to move south toward the Rafah border crossing with Egypt to be ready for its possible reopening after amid Israel's brutal bombing campaign of the Palestinian enclave.

Washington worked with Egypt, Israel and Qatar to try to open the Rafah crossing for limited hours on Saturday afternoon to allow Palestinian-Americans to leave, a senior State Department official told reporters travelling with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

But it was unclear whether Palestinian group Hamas, which controls Gaza, would allow access to the crossing, or whether any US citizens were able to exit, the official said later. It was not immediately known whether the United States would make another attempt to get Rafah opened on Sunday.

"We have informed US citizens in Gaza with whom we are in contact that if they assess it to be safe, they may wish to move closer to the Rafah border crossing," a U.S. State Department spokesperson said. "There may be very little notice if the crossing opens and it may only open for a limited time."

The US government estimates the number of dual-citizen Palestinian-Americans in Gaza at 500 to 600 among the strip's population of 2.3 million, and Washington hopes to get many of its nationals out of harm's way.

President Joe Biden stressed the urgent need to get humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in calls on Saturday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, the White House said.

In his first call with Abbas since Hamas' attack on Israel a week ago, Biden offered Abbas his full support for getting humanitarian aid to Palestinian people and discussed US efforts to ensure supplies reach civilians in Gaza, it said.

The US president has largely supported Israel's onslaught, emphasising the country's "right to defend itself" despite the mounting civilian death toll in Gaza.

On the third day of his most extensive trip yet to the Middle East, Blinken met with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan in Riyadh as the top American diplomat works with regional allies to prevent Israel's war on Gaza from spiralling into a bigger conflict, and help secure the release of hostages kidnapped by the Islamist group.

After a visit to the United Arab Emirates, Blinken returned for a second stop in Riyadh, where he could meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler.

With Washington especially determined to deter Iran from becoming involved, Blinken also spoke by phone with China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi. He asked his Chinese counterpart to help keep the conflict from spreading, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

It was the first high-level contact between Washington and Beijing since last weekend's Hamas attack and came amid heightened tensions between the two rival powers on a range of issues.

Iran, meanwhile, warned that if Israel's bombardment was not halted immediately, "the situation could spiral out of control."