Biden Weighs Response to Troop Attack, Positive Developments in Hostage Deal Talks

Shafaq News/ US President Joe Biden and his national security team are currently considering response options following an attack in Jordan that resulted in the deaths of three US service members and injuries to dozens more, according to the White House.

On Monday, National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications, John Kirby, told CNN that President Biden is actively reviewing potential responses. Kirby stated, "He had a good meeting yesterday with the national security team. He still has decision space ahead of them and I certainly get in front of that."

Regarding the attribution of the attack, Kirby mentioned that the administration is still "working our way through the attribution and what group was specifically responsible for this." He added, "We certainly believe that the group was supported by Kata'ib Hezbollah, which is one of the main IRGC Revolutionary Guard-core backed groups in Iraq and Syria that have been conducting so many of these attacks on our troops in our facilities."

Kirby emphasized that while this incident marked the first deadly strike on US troops in the region since the October 7 attacks, it's not the first attempt. He said, "This one had lethal consequences in ways that previous ones didn't, but that doesn't mean that the intent of the previous attacks weren't also lethal; it's just that we were able to defeat them."

Regarding ongoing talks about a possible release of hostages held in Gaza, Kirby noted that discussions have been "constructive." He cautioned, "A lot of work" remains to finalize a hostage deal, but expressed optimism about the ongoing talks with Qataris, Egyptians, and Israelis.

US officials hope that progress in the hostage agreement, which may include a suspension of the war in Gaza for two months, could positively impact the situation in the region. CIA Director Bill Burns was dispatched to Paris for talks on the proposed plan.