Tuesday's meeting will be the first for the families since the IDF last week confirmed that New York-born Omer Neutra was killed on October 7 and Hamas has held his body since.
"We need to keep at the work to see it through so that we can actually get the ceasefire for which we've been working," Kirby said.
The White House doesn't have any indication at this point that additional documents will be made public like the ones made public over the weekend, Kirby added.
The Biden administration’s focus on "de-escalation" hampers Israel's fight against Iranian proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas, weakening Israel’s self-defense.
The US claimed that it believed that Netanyahu would consent to the ceasefire soon after it was issued, while Israel said there was no such expectation.
"This elimination is intended to protect the citizens of Israel," Biden said in a brief statement to the press, adding that Israel was not seeking regional escalation.
White House spokesperson John Kirby noted that Hochstein’s trip is part of the Biden administration’s ongoing efforts to prevent the opening of a second front.
Hamas has complicated ceasefire negotiations with new demands, increasing difficulty for a deal. Despite this, efforts continue to find a resolution.
“We've suffered yet another huge setback here.” Kirby said, but that “doesn't mean we're not going to keep trying," John Kirby told reporters
While the US states that Israeli withdrawal from the Philadelphi Corridor is part of Phase One of the hostage deal, Israel denies, arguing that the area is not considered densely populated.
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