'Beyond' Hamas? Kirby smothers reporter for asking him to remove blame from Hamas for blocking Americans from leaving Gaza

John Kirby, coordinator for strategic communications at the National Security Council, shut down a reporter on Tuesday for essentially asking him to remove blame from Hamas for blocking civilians from leaving Gaza.

At the White House press briefing, ABC News correspondent Selina Wang asked Kirby to find blame "beyond" Hamas for why Americans remain stuck in Gaza.

"Why have Americans and foreign nationals still been unable to get out of Gaza, even though aid trucks have been going in? Beyond putting the blame on Hamas, what more can you say about what’s going on here and what the progress is?" she asked.

But Kirby made clear he had no interest in playing that game.

"How about if I just put the blame on Hamas?" Kirby fired back.

"They are putting obstacles up to allow us to get folks out. It's not Israel. It's not Egypt. It's not places like Jordan. Hamas has been making it difficult to do this."

Some aid is entering Gaza, Kirby acknowledged, but right now that "gate" is swinging in one direction only.

"Just because a gate swings one way doesn't mean it's going to swing the other way. Obviously, we want it to," he said. "Right now, the aid is getting in — not enough, but it is getting in. But right now, we just are not able to get people out. Believe me when I say we're working on this literally by the hour."

Earlier in the day, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told lawmakers that roughly 400 American citizens and their families — totaling about 1,000 people — remained trapped in Gaza.

Blinken confirmed, as Kirby said, that U.S. officials are working urgently to secure their safe exit. But Hamas has blocked the Rafah Border Crossing on the Egypt-Gaza border, the only exit point in southern Gaza.

"The impediment is simple: It's Hamas," Blinken said.

10/31/23: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and John Kirbywww.youtube.com

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