Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib, a fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank who grew up in Gaza, downplayed the danger for the Americans because their role in the return of displaced Palestinian civilians bolsters Hamas' claim of victory over Israel
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"Even Hamas, for all its horrendous rhetoric and actions, understands that it is this very American presence … that feeds its victory narrative"
January 19 marked the start of a 60-day ceasefire: the first phase of the deal mediated by Egypt and Qatar with US support
Since then, hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have been streaming on foot and in vehicles through the checkpoint north toward Gaza City, much of it churned to rubble by Israeli bombardments
*Reporting by Jonathan Landay and Aram Roston. Additional reporting by Erin Banco in New York, Nidal al-Mughrabi, Ahmed Mohamed Hassan and Nafisa Eltahir in Cairo and Alexander Cornwell and Emily Rose in Jerusalem Editing by Don Durfee and Frank Jack Daniel
