Biden: US ‘workin' like hell’ to free Gaza hostages

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Blinken returns to Tel Aviv as Israel-Hamas war intensifies

Secretary of State Antony Blinken landed in Tel Aviv, Israel on Monday, Oct. 16, to meet with Israeli leaders as the country's war with Hamas in Gaza continues to intensify.

President Biden says the U.S. is "workin’ like hell" to find the 13 Americans who remain unaccounted for in the Israel-Hamas war.  

Speaking on CBS’ "60 Minutes," Biden vowed that the U.S. is "gonna do everything in our power to find those who are still alive and set them free." 

"Everything in our power," Biden said. "And – I'm not gonna go into the detail of that, but there's – we're workin' like hell on it." 

Biden also said he wants the families of those missing to know that "the president of the United States of America cares deeply about what's happening."

LIVE UPDATES: ISRAEL AT WAR WITH HAMAS 

President Biden speaks at the 2023 Human Rights Campaign National Dinner on Saturday in Washington. (AP/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

"We have to communicate to the world this is critical," Biden added. "This is not even human behavior. It's pure barbarism. And we're gonna do everything in our power to get them home if we can find them." 

More than 3,600 people -- including 30 Americans -- have been killed since Hamas launched its attack against Israel on Oct. 7, leading to military action from Israeli forces. 

White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Sunday the U.S. is "actively trying" to locate hostages taken in Gaza and "won't rule anything in or out" regarding the American effort.  

KIRBY: US ‘ACTIVELY TRYING’ TO FIND HOSTAGES IN GAZA, WON’T ‘RULE ANYTHING IN OR OUT’ FOR AMERICAN EFFORT 

Israeli tanks move near the Gaza border on Thursday, Oct. 12. (Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)

"We are actively trying to find out where they are," Kirby told "Fox News Sunday" host Shannon Bream. "We don’t even know how many exactly. A small handful we know, but there could be more than we know. They could be in different groups. They could be moved around. I think you can understand. I hope everybody can understand – we’re gonna be careful about what we say publicly about our efforts to get those hostages home."

Kirby said that at the present time, there are "no plans or intentions" to put American troops on the ground.

Israeli tanks head towards the Gaza Strip border in southern Israel on Thursday, Oct. 12, ahead of an anticipated ground incursion. (AP/Ohad Zwigenberg)

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"Secretary Blinken’s in the region right now traveling around. I can tell you this is high on his agenda," Kirby added. "We’re working this literally by the hour, but we’re not going to get ahead in where we are in policy operations since we don’t have necessarily all the information that we need to try to get them home."  

Fox News’ Danielle Wallace and Landon Mion contributed to this report.