Medway Family Escapes Gaza After Nearly A Month In War Zone: Reports

MEDWAY, MA — A Medway family who has been trapped in Gaza since the Hamas attack on Israel began last month finally escaped to Egypt early Thursday morning, according to a statement from their attorney that was released to multiple outlets.

Abood Okal, his wife Wafaa Abuzayda, and their 1-year-old son Yousef had been staying in Rafah, just minutes from the border and with very limited access to clean water, food, and medicine, The Boston Globe reported.

The Okals, who Boston.com reported were visiting family in Gaza when the war broke out, had been packed in a home with around 40 other people, including about 10 children, Abode Okal said, according to the Globe.

While the family didn't say when they might be able to make the trip back home to Massachusetts, they did ask for the attention to be turned to those who have not yet been able to leave Gaza as the conflict rages on—asking for "compassion and prayers for the innocent civilians in Gaza, who gave them shelter, who helped them find food and water, but who continue to be without their own supply of food, water, fuel, or medicine to live," the statement said.

According to audio logs obtained by the Globe, little Yousef had been sleeping between his two parents for protection in case their home fell under attack. During the Okals' time in Rafah, their son suffered an ear infection, they ran out of milk, and they needed to wait hours in order to get their share of water, the logs said.

Despite U.S. government officials apparently urging Americans to cross the border into Egypt, Okal said that in doing so he and his family were turned away by Egyptian border guards, according to the Globe.

After learning that many foreign nationals were being allowed out of Gaza Wednesday, Okal said he was finally seeing " a glimpse of hope for leaving the war zone and saving our lives basically," the outlet reported.

"The Okal Family is overwhelmed with the love and support they have received from home and abroad, but they are also exhausted, physically and emotionally drained, and have a long journey ahead of them back to the United States," the statement from the family attorney said.

The Okals also expressed in the statement their "deepest gratitude to their family and friends around the world, the Medway community, the media for sharing their plight and the plight of the hundreds of other Americans trapped in Gaza, their elected officials who fought hard for their return, and the State Department for providing them with safe departure."

Hamas, which has ruled the Palestinian Gaza Strip since 2007, launched an attack inside Israel Oct. 7, killing more than 1,400 and taking hundreds of others hostage while seizing settlements. Its unprecedented breach of the border sent fighters inside border communities and military installations, shocked Israel and its allies, and raised questions about the group's capabilities and strategy.

The U.S. State Department designated Hamas a terrorist group in 1997. The European Union and other Western countries also consider it a terrorist organization.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.