U.S. Won’t Rule Out Sending Troops to Rescue Gaza Hostages, John Kirby Says

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Sunday that he won’t rule out the possibility that American troops could be deployed to help free hostages captured by the Hamas militant group, but noted there are no plans currently in place to do so. In an appearance on Fox News Sunday, Kirby was asked whether he would “absolutely rule out” the chance that U.S. special forces could sent to Gaza. “What I won’t do is rule anything in or out when it comes to getting our hostages home,” Kirby replied. “We’re working on this literally by the hour but again, in order for you to develop specific policy options, you got to have a lot more contextual information than is available to use right now and we’re working at that.” He added that there were “no plans or intentions to put U.S. troops on the ground to fight in this fight between Israel and Hamas,” and that the Biden administration was “actively trying” to track down the hostages. White House officials said earlier this week that at least 14 Americans remain unaccounted for in Israel, but it was not clear Sunday how many were being held by Hamas, which is believed to have taken more than 100 hostages last weekend.