Obama, Kerry extend Passover greetings

US President Barack Obama and his secretary of state, John Kerry, both sent Passover greetings to the Jewish people on Monday, ahead of the start of the eight-day festival.

In his remarks, the president mentioned the shooting by a white supremacist at two Jewish centers in Kansas on Sunday, which left three people dead.

Kerry, who will be attending a seocnd night Seder at the home of Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer on Tuesday, drew a parallel between the Jewish exodus from Egypt and the current peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. (Yitzhak Benhorin)