CNN host Poppy Harlow pressed White House national security spokesperson John Kirby about the administration’s efforts to rescue stranded Americans as war rages in Israel.
Roughly 600 Americans are trapped inside the Gaza Strip and will reportedly not be released unless the U.S. agrees to certain demands made by Hamas, the Islamic terror group governing the territory. Kirby told Harlow the administration would communicate with Hamas to reach an agreement on releasing these Americans.
“No doubt you’re working on it. There is a family we have been continuously speaking to and their attorney on this … He and his wife, have been trapped there with their one-year-old and he told us last week [that] he got a letter, a notification email from the State Department, but it had no updated content in terms of a way to get out. Are the demands being made by Hamas, are any of them achievable?” Harlow asked. “At this point, should they have hope?
“We believe that there will be a way to get those Americans out. We’d like to do that today if we could, I don’t know how close we are. We believe there’s a way to do this, we just have to work at it and we’re gonna continue to do that,” Kirby answered.
Okal and his family are Massachusetts natives who have been trapped in Gaza along with an estimated 1,700 individuals with European or U.S. citizenship. Israel blocked the Gaza Strip’s access to electricity, food, water and other basic necessities following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas. (RELATED: Martha MacCallum Confronts John Kirby Over Biden Admin Calling Early Lid Amid War In Israel)
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said Hamas took 222 people hostage during the deadly terror attack. Hamas terrorists released four American hostages in total, with the first two being set free on October 20, and the second pair three days later.