White House national security spokesperson John Kirby during a Monday press briefing could not say exactly how many Americans are being held hostage by Hamas.
The terrorist organization Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, brutally killing civilians while taking others hostage. Newsmax White House correspondent James Rosen asked Kirby how many Americans the administration has been able to confirm have been taken hostage since the attack.
“Less than ten,” Kirby responded.
“That’s not a number. I want a number from you,” Rosen followed up, causing Kirby to repeat his answer.
Rosen proceeded to ask Kirby why he couldn’t “give a number,” but Kirby responded by saying he had already given him an answer.
REPORTER: “How many Americans have you confirmed in that time are actually hostages?”
KIRBY: “Less than 10.”
REPORTER: “That’s not a number, I want a number from you.”
KIRBY: ” Less than 10.” pic.twitter.com/mQEkXzb8kA
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) October 30, 2023
Hamas took more than 200 hostages during its attack on Israel and has since released several, including two Americans. After the Americans were released, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said there were still an additional 10 Americans who were unaccounted for since Hamas’ attack. (RELATED: Biden Exerting Unprecedented Level Of Influence Behind The Scenes To Scale Back Israel’s Gaza Offensive: Report)
At least 33 Americans were killed in the conflict, Blinken told the United Nations. The United States is continuing to work with Israel to free both American and Israeli hostages, though the efforts cannot be discussed with the media, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told ABC News.
“We are continuing to see if there are ways to make that happen. We are prepared to support humanitarian pauses so that hostages can get out safely. And we will keep working at that every day because the president has no higher priority than the safe return of American citizens and wants to support the return of citizens of other countries and Israelis as well,” Sullivan told the outlet.