C-SPAN has the White House press conference now scheduled for 3:00. I think she always speaks after Biden.
Mr. Biden: In this moment we must be crystal clear, we stand with Israel. We will make sure Israel has what it needs to take care of it's citizens, defend itself, and respond to this attack. There is no justification for terrorism.
Mr. Biden: My team has been in near constant communication with our Israeli partners, and partners all across the region and the world, from the moment this crisis began. We're surging additional military assistance, including ammunition and interceptors to replenish Iron Dome. We're gong to make sure Israel does not run out of these critical assets to defend it's cities and it's citizens…we stand ready to move in additional assets as needed.
Mr. Biden: Let there be no doubt, the United States has Israel's back. We will make sure the Jewish and democratic state of Israel can defend itself today, tomorrow, as we always have.
Jean-Pierre: [Biden] held seventeen calls and meetings over Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, with his national security team.
Jake Sullivan [White House press conference]: Also at [Biden's] direction, the US military has enhanced it's force posture in the region to strengthen our deterrence, including the movement of a carrier strike group into the eastern Mediterranean, and we are prepared to move additional assets as necessary. Let me be clear, we did not move the carrier for Hamas, we moved the carrier to send a clear message of deterrence to other states, or non-state actors,that might seek to widen this war
Sullivan: We believe that there are twenty or more Americans at this point who are missing, but I want to underscore and stress this does not mean necessarily that there are twenty or more American hostages, just that is the number who are currently unaccounted for.
Reporter: Under what circumstances would you put American forces on the ground to help out?
Sullivan: At this point, that is not something that is under planning. What we are focused on when we talk about sending experts, it is people who can work on intelligence, who can work on overall planning, who can work on coordination with the Israeli government. We are not currently sending forces to Israel, and I'll leave it at that for now.
['experts' are always sent before overt military escalation]
Sullivan: As I stand here today, while Iran plays this broad role, sustained deep, and dark role, in providing all of this support and capabilities to Hamas, in terms of this particular, gruesome attack on October 7th, we don't currently have that information.
Sullivan: Not a dollar of that money [given to Iran by Biden] has been spent, and I will leave it at that.
Sullivan: You can expect to see American planes flying into Israel to deliver military capabilities to support Israel.
Sullivan: We believe that the United States is capably of supporting Ukraine in Europe, supporting our allies in the Indo-Pacific, and of supporting our close ally Israel in it's hour of need. We believe we have the resources, tools, and capacities to be able to effectively do that, and part of our job is to ensure that we are working across all of these theaters at once, and that's precisely what we;re doing each day.
Reporter: Does the administration regret making the prisoner swap with Iran in light of these attacks?
Sullivan: The United States does not regret bringing home American citizens who have been unjustly detained abroad.
Jean-Pierre: [how important it is] that we continue to support Ukraine in their time, as they are fighting for freedom, as they are fighting the aggression from Russia, it is important that we continue to do that because, look, doing that now, the cost benefit of it now is so important to do it now, than to allow Putin, a dictator like Putin, to continue beyond Ukraine.
Jean-Pierre took questions for ten minutes; Biden is about to give virtual remarks at the US Fire Administrator's Summit, providing a convenient excuse to cut it short.