US relatives push for path to safe passage

Mohamed El-Sharkawy, an aviation engineer in Phoenix, is one of many Palestinian Americans who has sought help from lawmakers in the U.S. to secure safe passage for relatives from Gaza.

Two of his family members were able to come to the U.S. in November with help from U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton's office, but many relatives, who are not U.S. citizens, remain in Gaza. The federal government has a more limited role in helping non-U.S. citizens leave Gaza, according to El-Sharkawy and Stanton's office.

As El-Sharkawy works to get his family out of the Gaza Strip, his relatives continue to face dire conditions in the region, where the entire population is facing acute food insecurity, according to an Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report.

"They are crying day and night, not knowing if they will make it the next day," said El-Sharkawy.

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