Hearing held in Chicago on evacuation of US families still in Gaza

Attorneys in Chicago representing Palestinian families took part in a preliminary injunction hearing on Tuesday related to their lawsuit demanding that the US compel the evacuation of US citizens and their families in Gaza.

Though the judge hasn't yet issued a decision, lawyers for Palestinians with family stranded in Gaza believe that having the hearing itself was an important step in their case.

The session, which lasted just over two hours, took place at a federal courthouse in downtown Chicago with attorneys from the civil rights organisations Project Taha and the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

This follows a motion filed in March demanding that the US government evacuate US citizens, permanent residents and their families. It also follows the evacuations in May of 17 US citizens from Gaza, two of whom are clients of Project Taha and CAIR. Their third client remains in Gaza, and will not leave until her three children are able to evacuate.

The injunction asks: "Does our government view the lives of Palestinian Americans stranded in Gaza as worthy of being saved?"

Since the outbreak of Israel's war on Gaza, the US has helped evacuate US citizens from the besieged enclave. However, some who remain have close family members, including spouses, children and parents, who are not citizens and can’t be left behind.

The judge for the hearing, a George W. Bush appointee, granted permission for three witnesses to appear. Khalid Mourtaga left Gaza several days ago. Marowa Abusharia is the wife of a man in Gaza. Sahar Harara is the daughter of a green card holder who was killed.

"The witnesses gave really powerful statements about their experiences, either evacuating or losing loved ones," Maria Kari, an attorney with Project Taha, told The New Arab following Tuesday's hearing.

"The government [side] said the witnesses weren't relevant, but the judge went ahead and not only held a hearing but wanted to hear from the witnesses. She was thoughtful and asked a lot of questions," said Kari.

She said the other side framed their argument as a "political question" for US President Donald Trump to make a ruling on. "They didn't even bother bringing a proper case," she said.

She noted that the attorneys for the Palestinians are invoking the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a permanent resident living in Maryland who was illegally deported from the US to El Salvador, with the Supreme Court unanimously ruling that he should be able to return to the US.

"If we have a duty to facilitate the return of non-Americans, then we have a duty to help Americans," she said.

A transcript of the hearing will be released in the coming days.