Biden to speak with families of Americans believed to be held hostage by Hamas

President Joe Biden on Friday will speak via Zoom with the families of Americans believed to be held hostage by Hamas.

“I think they have to know that the president of the United States of America cares deeply about what’s happening. Deeply. We have to communicate to the world (that) this is critical. This is not even human behavior. It’s pure barbarism,” Biden told CBS’ Scott Pelley in a clip of a “60 Minutes” interview that was released Friday morning.

He added: “We’re going to do everything in our power to get them home if we can find them.”

A source familiar with the situation confirmed that the call is expected to happen later Friday.

Fourteen Americans remain unaccounted for, and the White House believes “less than a handful” are being held hostage by Hamas following this weekend’s attacks, National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby has said.

The US is in “direct communication” with Israeli counterparts and the families, Kirby told CNN’s Poppy Harlow on Friday morning.

“The families have been a good source of information because some of them, you know, they saw their loved one being abducted or they know they’ve seen images of their loved one being abducted. So they have been a significant and an important source of information as well,” Kirby said Friday.

But, he added, “We just don’t have enough information to develop any specific policy options one way or the other.”

The US is offering Israel hostage recovery expertise, with FBI and Pentagon personnel on the ground providing support.

Diplomatic efforts to recover the hostages are also underway, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken currently traveling in Qatar, which CNN has reported is among the countries in talks with Hamas over hostages.

Kirby…