John Kirby News

COP28 climate talks on Tuesday as world leaders including US President Joe Biden signalled they would not be attending the negotiations that come during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war roiling the wider Middle East. The two-week meeting of international leaders aims to assess where the world stands when it comes to limiting emissions to slow global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) compared with pre-industrial times. Emirati officials said on Tuesday they expect over 70,000 attendees at the talks, including heads of state. Britain's King Charles and Pope Francis will be among the leaders to attend the talks, even as the 86-year-old Francis battles a lung inflammation.

Argentine President-elect Javier Milei is getting a meeting with a top Biden aide

Antony Blinken will return this week to the Middle East as the U.S. hopes to find a way to extend a cease-fire in Gaza and get more hostages released, the State Department said Monday. It will be his third trip to the region since Israel's war with Hamas began last month. Blinken will travel to Israel and the West Bank after attending Ukraine-focused meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday in Brussels and Skopje, North Macedonia, where foreign ministers from NATO and the Organization for Peace and Security in Europe are gathering.

Gaza's biggest hospital. Reuters could not immediately verify the video that showed a deep hole in the ground, littered with and surrounded by concrete and wood rubble and sand. The army said its troops also found a vehicle in the hospital containing a large number of weapons, according to a report published by Reuters. 1) Hamas on Thursday said claims by the Pentagon and US State Department that the group uses Al Shifa for military purposes "is a repetition of a blatantly false narrative, demonstrated by the weak and ridiculous performances of the occupation army spokesman." 2) White House spokesperson John Kirby said the United States is confident in an assessment from its own intelligence agencies on Hamas activities in Al Shifa hospital and will neither share nor elaborate on it.

AFP. Asked whether there is a potential deal to free more of the hostages being held by Hamas militants, Netanyahu replied: "There could be." However, he did not elaborate on any potential strategy that may be implemented to release all or part of the 239 captives that Israel claims are being kept. "I think the less I say about it, the more I'll increase the chances that it materializes," he added. Meanwhile, Netanyahu has flatly rejected calls for a ceasefire in Gaza without the release of the hostages.

President Joe Biden pressed Israelis for a multi-day stoppage in the fighting in a bid to release hostages held by the militant group. Biden said Thursday that there was “no possibility" of a formal cease-fire at the moment, and said it had “taken a little longer" than he hoped for Israel to agree to the humanitarian pauses.

White House has called India a key strategic partner and said the US will leave it to the Indian government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to decide the country's stance on any particular crisis or contingency around the world. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said was speaking about India's stand on the Israel crisis. «India is a key strategic partner.

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Friday will break weeks of silence since war broke out between Hamas and Israel, in a speech that could impact the region as the Gaza conflict rages. After Hamas militants launched an unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel from the Gaza Strip, Lebanon's southern border has seen escalating tit-for-tat exchanges, mainly between Israel and Hezbollah, an ally of the Palestinian group, stoking fears of a broader conflagration. The cross-border attacks heated up Thursday, as Israel responded with a «broad assault» after Hezbollah attacked 19 Israeli positions simultaneously, according to the group. Rockets also hit the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona near the border in a barrage claimed by the Lebanese section of Hamas's armed wing. Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has warned that «the region is like a powder keg» and that «anything is possible» if Israel does not stop attacking Gaza. US President Joe Biden has sent two aircraft carrier groups to the eastern Mediterranean and warned Hezbollah and others to stay out of the conflict. «We've got significant national security interests at play here,» US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters. «I don't believe we've seen any indication yet specifically that Hezbollah is ready to go in full force.

Hamas attacks. They also suggested that the normalization of relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia might have influenced Hamas to carry out those attacks.

Joe Biden has sent a rare message to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warning Tehran against targeting U.S. personnel in the Middle East, the White House said on Thursday after a spate of attacks on American forces in the region. «There was a direct message relayed,» White House spokesman John Kirby said at a news briefing, declining to elaborate. Iran's mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment. U.S. officials want to avoid a wider conflict in the Middle East following the Oct. 7 attack by the militant Hamas group on Israel that killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians. About 900 additional U.S. troops are headed to the region or have recently arrived there to bolster air defenses to protect U.S. personnel amid a surge in attacks in the region by Iran-affiliated groups, the Pentagon said.

PTI reported. Biden's statement was made on Tuesday during a photo opportunity with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese when he was asked about it.

Reuters reported. In an official statement, the White House earlier said, “President Biden will then travel to Amman, Jordan, where he will meet with his Majesty King Abdullah, Egyptian President Sisi, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas." "He will reiterate that Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and self-determination and discuss the humanitarian needs of civilians in Gaza," the statement said. Israel had declared war on Hamas earlier this month after a surprise attack killed more than 1400 people and took around 200 hostages.

AP, according to a statement from White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby on Monday evening, President Biden's itinerary includes a visit to Jordan. During this visit, he is scheduled to hold meetings with key regional leaders, namely King Abdullah of Jordan, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Also Read: Israel-Hamas war LIVE updates: Less than ‘24 hours of water, electricity left’ in Gaza; death toll- 2,808 “We’ve been crystal clear about the need for humanitarian aid to be able to continue to flow into Gaza.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — The White House said on Friday it has not seen any indications that other actors were considering joining and widening the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Afghanistan minister reiterated that 'men and women are not equal' based on Sharia, the White House has said, the Taliban needs to meet its commitments to get legitimacy from the international community. «We've not recognised them as a governing power in Afghanistan. They want that.

Khalistan terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, said national security spokesman John Kirby on Wednesday. Kirby said that the White House encourages India to cooperate in any investigation by Canada, according to a report published by Reuters. “We are deeply concerned.

G20 Summit being held in India. However, Washington has also highlighted the problems that could lead to the G20 Summit ending without a joint communique. G20 Sherpas are trying to work together on ironing out a final declaration that will be adopted by PM Narendra Modi and other world leaders over the weekend, reported ANI.

A U.S. official said Monday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may travel to Russia soon to meet with President Vladimir Putin as the Kremlin tries to acquire military equipment for use in its war in Ukraine.

The White House said it has new intelligence inputs which shows that Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have traded letters as Russia is seeking weapons from North Korea amid the Ukraine war, AP reported on Wednesday. John Kirby, US National Security Council spokesperson, giving the latest findings said Russia is looking for additional artillery shells and other basic materiel to shore up its defense industrial base, just weeks after White House said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu during a recent visit to Pyongyang called on North Korean officials to increase the sale of munitions to Moscow for its Ukraine war.

By Andrea Shalal and Michael Martina

By Moussa Aksar and Boureima Balima