SAN BERNARDINO, United States: President Barack Obama met late Friday with families of the victims of the San Bernardino shooting, saying they represent the strength, unity and love that exists in the United States.

Obama, who was accompanied by his wife Michelle, also praised the relatives for efforts to promote tolerance in the wake of the attack.

The mass shooting on Dec. 2 left 14 people dead and 22 wounded in what is being investigated as a terror attack.

Obama stopped in California en route to Hawaii for a family Christmas vacation, spending nearly three hours with those who lost loved ones and first responders who rushed to the scene of the rampage.

“As difficult as this time is for them and for this entire community, they’re also representative of the strength and the unity and the love that exists in this community and in this country,” Obama said.