Kirby slams Hamas chief Sinwar as 'the major obstacle' to cease-fire, hostage release deal with Israel

White House nationalist information spokesperson John Kirby deemed the person of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar, "the large obstacle" to achieving a cease-fire woody successful caller weeks. 

During an quality connected "Fox News Sunday," Kirby responded to The Wall Street Journal's reporting that elder U.S. officials who hoped for months for a cease-fire and hostage merchandise woody present bash not expect Israel and Hamas to scope an statement earlier the extremity of President Biden's term. The study cited medication officials arsenic saying Hamas makes demands and "then refuses to accidental ‘yes’ aft the U.S. and Israel judge them." 

"It's surely evident to america that Mr. Sinwar remains the large obstacle present to getting a deal. And it surely is the lawsuit that helium has done thing successful the caller weeks to beryllium that he's consenting to determination this guardant successful a bully religion way. He is the large obstacle, nary question astir it," Kirby said Sunday. "It's pugnacious to get them to accidental yes to things that he's already said that helium wanted. So it's very, precise difficult." 

"But arsenic the president said the different day, everything's unrealistic until each of a abrupt it's not anymore. And we're gonna support trying astatine this," Kirby added. "And this thought that we're conscionable throwing up our hands and ‘well, it’s not gonna hap earlier the extremity of the term,' I tin archer ya that's not wherever the president is. It's not wherever Jake Sullivan oregon Tony Blinken are. We inactive judge that there's a anticipation of moving this forward, and we're gonna support trying. Those hostages request an effort to get them home. We're not going to springiness up connected that."  

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National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby speaks during the regular briefing astatine the White House successful Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Kirby reiterated the administration's presumption that Israel has a close to support itself, but acknowledged that immoderate of the disapproval of however Israel is handling the struggle has travel from the Biden medication arsenic well. 

"They perfectly person a close to support themselves. And we are inactive providing them the tools and capabilities to bash that. But however they bash it matters," Kirby said.  "President Biden has said that, Vice President Harris has said that to our Israeli counterparts. They request to beryllium doing it successful arsenic precise and arsenic discriminant a mode to debar harm to civilian infrastructure and much critically, to civilian life. So it does substance a batch to us." 

"Fox News Sunday" big Shannon Bream besides asked Kirby to respond to the decease of Hezbollah commandant Ibrahim Akil, who was killed successful an Israeli airstrike successful Beirut’s confederate suburbs Friday. 

Bream pointed to disapproval from Trump medication Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who suggested Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, successful expressing fearfulness of escalation to Israeli officials aft the strike, was not grateful capable to Israel for taking retired a antheral liable for the decease of hundreds of Americans during the 1983 Beirut barracks bombings. 

A poster successful the Iranian superior Tehran, featuring Hamas' caller governmental chief, Yahya Sinwar, connected Aug. 13, 2024. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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"Nobody, including Secretary Austin, is shedding a teardrop implicit the decease of Mr. Akil, who does person American humor connected his hands. I deliberation the world's amended for not having him walking astir connected the satellite anymore. But that doesn't mean we privation to spot a afloat retired war. We don't believe, again, that that's successful the champion involvement of the Israeli people," Kirby said. 

Akil was 1 of the Lebanon-based violent group’s apical subject officials, successful complaint of its elite forces, and had been connected Washington’s wanted database for years.

The onslaught Friday came arsenic the radical was inactive reeling from an onslaught targeting Hezbollah communications earlier past week erstwhile thousands of pagers exploded simultaneously. The onslaught killed 12 people, mostly Hezbollah members, and injured thousands, according to Hezbollah officials. Israel is suspected of being down that onslaught but has not claimed responsibility. 

Israeli information and rescue forces enactment astatine the tract deed by a rocket fired from Lebanon, successful Kiryat Bialik, bluish Israel, connected Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Gil Nechushtan)

As Hezbollah has been launching rockets into Israel since October 2023, Kirby said the U.S. has been moving astatine "intense diplomacy present present for months to effort to forestall an escalation successful the struggle up astatine the blue enactment with Lebanon."  

"We inactive judge that determination should beryllium a beardown effort to enactment connected that diplomacy and to effort to get that – that escalation to stop, to get the concern to stabilize, " Kirby said. 

Kirby besides defended the Biden administration's handling of Iran, contempt disapproval from Republicans. 

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"Iran is 1 of the astir heavy sanctioned countries successful the world," Kirby said. "And that's successful part, really ample part, to what President Biden has done. Six 100 sanctions unsocial conscionable successful this administration, 60 authorisation regimes. So I don't bargain the statement that we someway turned a unsighted oculus and conscionable fixed them cash." 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.