1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:00,000 2 00:00:05,289 --> 00:00:07,511 All right , good afternoon , everyone . 3 00:00:07,511 --> 00:00:09,622 Just a few things at the top and then 4 00:00:09,622 --> 00:00:11,789 I'll be happy to take your questions . 5 00:00:11,789 --> 00:00:14,011 So as you know , the secretary has been 6 00:00:14,011 --> 00:00:13,920 on travel to the Indo Pacific for the 7 00:00:13,930 --> 00:00:16,239 last week and today he wraps up his 8 00:00:16,250 --> 00:00:18,889 trip in Jakarta , Indonesia throughout 9 00:00:18,899 --> 00:00:21,239 the secretary's visits to in to India 10 00:00:21,250 --> 00:00:23,780 Republic of Korea and Indonesia . The 11 00:00:23,790 --> 00:00:25,568 common thread across all of his 12 00:00:25,568 --> 00:00:27,290 engagements have been a shared 13 00:00:27,290 --> 00:00:29,234 commitment to a free and open Indo 14 00:00:29,234 --> 00:00:31,909 Pacific . He heard directly from allies 15 00:00:31,920 --> 00:00:33,753 and partners who expressed their 16 00:00:33,753 --> 00:00:35,531 support for this goal . And the 17 00:00:35,531 --> 00:00:37,364 department will continue to work 18 00:00:37,364 --> 00:00:39,142 closely with ASEAN to promote a 19 00:00:39,142 --> 00:00:41,476 regional order based on the rule of law , 20 00:00:41,476 --> 00:00:43,740 respect for sovereignty and territorial 21 00:00:43,750 --> 00:00:46,080 integrity . Also , during his trip , 22 00:00:46,090 --> 00:00:48,146 the secretary had the opportunity to 23 00:00:48,146 --> 00:00:50,201 speak with his counterparts from the 24 00:00:50,201 --> 00:00:52,257 Philippines , Thailand , Vietnam and 25 00:00:52,257 --> 00:00:54,090 Indonesia to discuss a number of 26 00:00:54,090 --> 00:00:56,549 bilateral initiatives . Now , as you 27 00:00:56,560 --> 00:00:58,619 saw last night , President Biden and 28 00:00:58,630 --> 00:01:00,297 President Xi committed to the 29 00:01:00,297 --> 00:01:02,352 resumption of high level military to 30 00:01:02,352 --> 00:01:04,779 military communication . Additionally , 31 00:01:04,790 --> 00:01:07,000 the US and the PR C agreed to resuming 32 00:01:07,010 --> 00:01:09,121 telephone conversations between their 33 00:01:09,121 --> 00:01:11,232 theater commanders . Secretary Austin 34 00:01:11,232 --> 00:01:13,232 welcomes this announcement and will 35 00:01:13,232 --> 00:01:15,232 meet with his counterpart when that 36 00:01:15,232 --> 00:01:17,232 person is named as these agreements 37 00:01:17,232 --> 00:01:19,343 were just reached yesterday , we know 38 00:01:19,343 --> 00:01:21,454 that we have work to do with the pr C 39 00:01:21,454 --> 00:01:23,566 military to solidify these principles 40 00:01:23,566 --> 00:01:25,788 for actions . We will keep you informed 41 00:01:25,788 --> 00:01:27,899 as , as these procedures are codified 42 00:01:27,899 --> 00:01:30,121 and when we schedule our first meetings 43 00:01:30,121 --> 00:01:32,343 and calls . And as secretary Austin has 44 00:01:32,343 --> 00:01:34,177 said , maintaining open lines of 45 00:01:34,177 --> 00:01:35,899 communications between our two 46 00:01:35,899 --> 00:01:37,732 militaries is essential to avoid 47 00:01:37,732 --> 00:01:39,843 misunderstandings and miscalculations 48 00:01:39,843 --> 00:01:41,677 that could lead to a crisis or a 49 00:01:41,677 --> 00:01:44,860 conflict . Switching gears earlier this 50 00:01:44,870 --> 00:01:47,092 morning , Congress avoided a government 51 00:01:47,092 --> 00:01:49,037 shutdown by passing the bipartisan 52 00:01:49,037 --> 00:01:51,148 continuing resolution which I believe 53 00:01:51,148 --> 00:01:53,314 is headed to the president's desk desk 54 00:01:53,314 --> 00:01:55,550 for him to sign this short term cr will 55 00:01:55,559 --> 00:01:57,726 ensure that our troop , our troops and 56 00:01:57,726 --> 00:01:59,948 civilian workforce will be paid through 57 00:01:59,948 --> 00:02:02,170 the holidays . However , the department 58 00:02:02,170 --> 00:02:04,226 continues to urge Congress to pass a 59 00:02:04,226 --> 00:02:06,448 full year appropriations , which is the 60 00:02:06,448 --> 00:02:08,670 best thing that Congress can do for our 61 00:02:08,670 --> 00:02:10,892 national defense . As we have long made 62 00:02:10,892 --> 00:02:12,948 clear , operating under a short term 63 00:02:12,948 --> 00:02:15,003 continuing resolution hamstrings the 64 00:02:15,003 --> 00:02:17,115 department's peoples and our programs 65 00:02:17,115 --> 00:02:18,948 and undermines both our national 66 00:02:18,948 --> 00:02:21,115 security and competitiveness . We also 67 00:02:21,115 --> 00:02:23,281 urge Congress to pass our supplemental 68 00:02:23,281 --> 00:02:25,448 funding request that would allow us to 69 00:02:25,448 --> 00:02:27,670 keep supporting Ukraine and Israel , uh 70 00:02:27,670 --> 00:02:29,615 providing life saving humanitarian 71 00:02:29,615 --> 00:02:31,726 assistance across the globe and makes 72 00:02:31,726 --> 00:02:33,559 critical investments in the Indo 73 00:02:33,559 --> 00:02:35,781 Pacific . The supplemental just doesn't 74 00:02:35,781 --> 00:02:38,003 just meet today's urgent challenges but 75 00:02:38,003 --> 00:02:40,226 also invest in our industrial base here 76 00:02:40,226 --> 00:02:42,281 at home because as we send munitions 77 00:02:42,281 --> 00:02:44,115 from our stockpiles the money to 78 00:02:44,115 --> 00:02:46,281 replenish our supplies , invest in the 79 00:02:46,281 --> 00:02:48,559 American industry and American workers . 80 00:02:48,559 --> 00:02:50,559 These investments will mean greater 81 00:02:50,559 --> 00:02:52,781 prosperity at home and greater security 82 00:02:52,781 --> 00:02:52,250 abroad . And that's why we have 83 00:02:52,259 --> 00:02:54,203 submitted this urgent supplemental 84 00:02:54,203 --> 00:02:57,050 request . Uh sorry , supplemental 85 00:02:57,059 --> 00:02:59,170 budget request to help fund America's 86 00:02:59,170 --> 00:03:01,392 national security needs and to stand by 87 00:03:01,392 --> 00:03:03,281 our partners and to invest in our 88 00:03:03,281 --> 00:03:05,779 defense , industrial base . And lastly , 89 00:03:05,789 --> 00:03:08,529 also in Congress , um an additional 90 00:03:08,539 --> 00:03:10,761 three nominations were submitted to the 91 00:03:10,761 --> 00:03:13,720 Senate , which means there are now 455 92 00:03:13,729 --> 00:03:17,110 nominations concerning 451 general and 93 00:03:17,119 --> 00:03:18,897 flag officers who are currently 94 00:03:18,897 --> 00:03:20,952 impacted by Senator Tom Tuberville's 95 00:03:20,952 --> 00:03:23,059 holds , we are encouraged by the 96 00:03:23,070 --> 00:03:25,237 efforts in the Senate to find a way to 97 00:03:25,237 --> 00:03:27,348 confirm all of our qualified nominees 98 00:03:27,348 --> 00:03:29,292 given that these holds , as you've 99 00:03:29,292 --> 00:03:31,403 heard me say many times before , have 100 00:03:31,403 --> 00:03:33,237 an impact to our readiness , our 101 00:03:33,237 --> 00:03:35,181 national security and our military 102 00:03:35,181 --> 00:03:37,348 families . These holds have lasted far 103 00:03:37,348 --> 00:03:39,570 too long and every day that goes by our 104 00:03:39,570 --> 00:03:39,539 department and our force suffer from 105 00:03:39,550 --> 00:03:41,717 them . And with that , I'd be happy to 106 00:03:41,717 --> 00:03:44,059 take your questions , Klia , thanks 107 00:03:44,070 --> 00:03:46,181 Sabrina . Um One quick question on uh 108 00:03:46,190 --> 00:03:49,759 China . Do you know when the last time 109 00:03:49,770 --> 00:03:51,937 the so called red phone or whatever it 110 00:03:51,937 --> 00:03:54,103 was , it was called , was used between 111 00:03:54,103 --> 00:03:56,214 the US and China . And if you don't , 112 00:03:56,214 --> 00:03:58,437 if you could just , can you take that ? 113 00:03:58,437 --> 00:04:00,437 Yeah , I think I took a question um 114 00:04:00,437 --> 00:04:02,659 similar to that last time when I was up 115 00:04:02,659 --> 00:04:01,964 here . So Yeah , I'm happy to take that 116 00:04:01,975 --> 00:04:05,005 question . Yeah . And then , um , the 117 00:04:05,014 --> 00:04:08,904 US has now shot down , um , a drone 118 00:04:08,914 --> 00:04:11,335 that was headed in the direction of the 119 00:04:11,345 --> 00:04:14,365 hudner and the Houthis have also shot 120 00:04:14,375 --> 00:04:18,369 down a US drone . Do you believe 121 00:04:18,380 --> 00:04:21,730 that this drone was headed for the 122 00:04:21,739 --> 00:04:24,130 hudner ? Because the release says that 123 00:04:24,140 --> 00:04:26,369 the ship took self defense action . Do 124 00:04:26,380 --> 00:04:28,269 you dispute it was headed for the 125 00:04:28,269 --> 00:04:30,380 hudner or do you think it was , or do 126 00:04:30,380 --> 00:04:33,309 you think it wasn't ? And then if so at 127 00:04:33,470 --> 00:04:35,589 what point does the US take some sort 128 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:37,822 of action against the Houthis for these 129 00:04:37,822 --> 00:04:41,339 two very direct attacks on the US ? So 130 00:04:41,350 --> 00:04:43,940 in ter , um I'll take your last 131 00:04:43,950 --> 00:04:46,228 question first . So in terms of action , 132 00:04:46,228 --> 00:04:48,394 um as you've heard me say before , but 133 00:04:48,394 --> 00:04:50,283 we always reserve the right um to 134 00:04:50,283 --> 00:04:52,228 respond at a time and place of our 135 00:04:52,228 --> 00:04:54,228 choosing . I don't have anything to 136 00:04:54,228 --> 00:04:56,172 preview from here today . Um And I 137 00:04:56,172 --> 00:04:58,283 won't get ahead of any decisions that 138 00:04:58,283 --> 00:05:00,283 the secretary or that the president 139 00:05:00,283 --> 00:05:02,506 decides to make . Um in terms of the uh 140 00:05:02,506 --> 00:05:04,728 uh assessment that it where , where the 141 00:05:04,728 --> 00:05:06,783 drone was headed . Um Our assessment 142 00:05:06,783 --> 00:05:08,894 right now is that the intended target 143 00:05:08,894 --> 00:05:11,117 was not the hudner , but that the drone 144 00:05:11,117 --> 00:05:13,279 got so close to the crew that the 145 00:05:13,290 --> 00:05:15,609 commander did feel it necessary to 146 00:05:15,619 --> 00:05:18,760 engage and shoot down the drone . Um 147 00:05:18,769 --> 00:05:20,880 And I'm sorry , did you have one more 148 00:05:20,880 --> 00:05:23,047 question that I'm forgetting ? Um No , 149 00:05:23,047 --> 00:05:25,047 because it was self , it was it was 150 00:05:25,047 --> 00:05:27,213 self defense , correct ? So it was not 151 00:05:27,213 --> 00:05:29,320 targeting the hudner you believe or 152 00:05:29,329 --> 00:05:31,850 what's our assessment ? An assessment 153 00:05:31,859 --> 00:05:33,915 that it was targeting our assessment 154 00:05:33,915 --> 00:05:36,081 right now is that it was not targeting 155 00:05:36,081 --> 00:05:38,248 the hudner , but it was headed in that 156 00:05:38,248 --> 00:05:40,570 general direction . Um And also just to 157 00:05:40,660 --> 00:05:42,716 sorry , very quickly go back to your 158 00:05:42,716 --> 00:05:44,438 first question on mill to mill 159 00:05:44,438 --> 00:05:46,438 communications . I should have also 160 00:05:46,438 --> 00:05:48,604 clarified that while I'm happy to take 161 00:05:48,604 --> 00:05:48,529 the question there , of course , have 162 00:05:48,540 --> 00:05:50,651 been communications between our ships 163 00:05:50,651 --> 00:05:52,873 within the region where there are , you 164 00:05:52,873 --> 00:05:54,984 know , moments where you know , there 165 00:05:54,984 --> 00:05:57,369 is deconfliction used . I think you're 166 00:05:57,380 --> 00:05:59,602 more specifically asking on like a high 167 00:05:59,602 --> 00:06:01,989 level , high level that was set up a 168 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:04,167 number of years ago and it was used on 169 00:06:04,167 --> 00:06:06,389 and off . But yeah , I just didn't want 170 00:06:06,389 --> 00:06:08,444 you to think like there , you know , 171 00:06:08,444 --> 00:06:08,350 there , while there have not been high 172 00:06:08,359 --> 00:06:10,248 level mill to mill communications 173 00:06:10,248 --> 00:06:11,915 between the secretary and his 174 00:06:11,915 --> 00:06:14,081 counterpart um at a , you know , lower 175 00:06:14,081 --> 00:06:16,081 levels in theater , there have been 176 00:06:16,081 --> 00:06:17,970 communications to deconflict from 177 00:06:17,970 --> 00:06:20,279 crises . Two questions first yesterday . 178 00:06:20,290 --> 00:06:22,234 Uh President Biden made a bunch of 179 00:06:22,234 --> 00:06:24,234 remarks about Israel and one of the 180 00:06:24,234 --> 00:06:26,290 ones he made was he talked about how 181 00:06:26,290 --> 00:06:28,179 doctors and nurses were now being 182 00:06:28,179 --> 00:06:31,690 locked shiffa but then added that quote 183 00:06:31,700 --> 00:06:33,867 unquote what was occurring before with 184 00:06:33,867 --> 00:06:36,144 indiscriminate bombing by the Israelis . 185 00:06:36,144 --> 00:06:38,519 Do you agree with President Biden that 186 00:06:38,529 --> 00:06:40,640 there were indiscriminate bombings by 187 00:06:40,640 --> 00:06:42,862 Israel or with Israel ? That was saying 188 00:06:42,862 --> 00:06:44,807 that their bombings were precision 189 00:06:44,807 --> 00:06:46,918 strikes . Well , I can't remember his 190 00:06:46,918 --> 00:06:49,029 exact context but I think what he was 191 00:06:49,029 --> 00:06:51,029 referring to and I , you know , not 192 00:06:51,029 --> 00:06:53,196 looking at the remarks but was that we 193 00:06:53,196 --> 00:06:52,269 didn't want to see , uh , 194 00:06:52,279 --> 00:06:55,010 indiscriminate bombing around or into 195 00:06:55,019 --> 00:06:58,451 the hospital . So what the DF did was 196 00:06:58,462 --> 00:07:00,184 go into the hospital with more 197 00:07:00,184 --> 00:07:02,240 precision . It wasn't , you know , I 198 00:07:02,240 --> 00:07:04,406 think the President references , there 199 00:07:04,406 --> 00:07:06,240 wasn't carpet bombing around the 200 00:07:06,240 --> 00:07:08,462 hospital or at the hospital itself . So 201 00:07:08,462 --> 00:07:08,261 I don't disagree with what the 202 00:07:08,272 --> 00:07:10,481 President said or in his remarks . But 203 00:07:10,592 --> 00:07:12,648 I think what you saw when it came to 204 00:07:12,648 --> 00:07:14,814 the Al Shifa Hospital in particular is 205 00:07:14,814 --> 00:07:18,141 that the ID F was um going in with , 206 00:07:18,152 --> 00:07:21,302 with , with more precision and um you 207 00:07:21,312 --> 00:07:23,256 know , we said all along from this 208 00:07:23,256 --> 00:07:25,145 podium and from others across the 209 00:07:25,145 --> 00:07:27,312 administration that we never wanted to 210 00:07:27,312 --> 00:07:29,423 see a firefight within the hospital . 211 00:07:29,423 --> 00:07:31,368 Um We never wanted to see innocent 212 00:07:31,368 --> 00:07:33,034 civilians get caught in those 213 00:07:33,034 --> 00:07:34,979 crossfires . Um And so I , I think 214 00:07:34,979 --> 00:07:36,868 that's what the president was was 215 00:07:36,868 --> 00:07:38,868 speaking to . And then secondly , I 216 00:07:38,868 --> 00:07:41,034 think in your last briefing , you said 217 00:07:41,034 --> 00:07:43,034 that Hamas and Pij were operating a 218 00:07:43,034 --> 00:07:45,312 command and control node from hospital . 219 00:07:45,312 --> 00:07:47,201 The Israelis have put out several 220 00:07:47,201 --> 00:07:49,034 videos over the past 24 hours of 221 00:07:49,034 --> 00:07:51,201 evidence of what they say , you know , 222 00:07:51,335 --> 00:07:53,557 weapons , a couple of machine guns , et 223 00:07:53,557 --> 00:07:55,613 cetera , but no real evidence of any 224 00:07:55,613 --> 00:07:57,446 command and control loads in the 225 00:07:57,446 --> 00:07:59,613 traditional sense . Do you still stand 226 00:07:59,613 --> 00:08:01,835 by your assessment ? And have you asked 227 00:08:01,835 --> 00:08:03,835 the Israelis to provide evidence of 228 00:08:03,835 --> 00:08:06,002 that ? Yeah . Well , we still stand by 229 00:08:06,002 --> 00:08:05,876 the assessment that , that I think I 230 00:08:05,885 --> 00:08:07,885 read out on Tuesday , which is what 231 00:08:07,885 --> 00:08:09,885 you're referring to is that we know 232 00:08:09,885 --> 00:08:12,052 Hamas has used hospitals like Al Shifa 233 00:08:12,052 --> 00:08:14,205 to operate out of , um , to conceal 234 00:08:14,216 --> 00:08:16,295 their military operations . I mean , 235 00:08:16,305 --> 00:08:18,249 taking a step back hospital should 236 00:08:18,249 --> 00:08:20,416 never be used for that to begin with . 237 00:08:20,416 --> 00:08:22,583 So , however , you define it a command 238 00:08:22,583 --> 00:08:24,805 and control center node , um a means of 239 00:08:24,805 --> 00:08:27,027 operating uh terrorist actions out of a 240 00:08:27,027 --> 00:08:30,007 hospital that should never happen to 241 00:08:30,018 --> 00:08:32,737 begin with . Um We stand by the , the 242 00:08:32,747 --> 00:08:34,469 downgraded intelligence that I 243 00:08:34,469 --> 00:08:36,677 announced on Tuesday that um we know 244 00:08:36,687 --> 00:08:38,854 they were using Al Shifa Hospital , we 245 00:08:38,854 --> 00:08:40,965 know that they use other hospitals in 246 00:08:40,965 --> 00:08:42,687 the region um when it comes to 247 00:08:42,687 --> 00:08:45,080 conducting their terrorist 248 00:08:45,530 --> 00:08:48,780 organizations and um attacks . And so , 249 00:08:48,940 --> 00:08:52,080 um yes , we stand by that , but we know , 250 00:08:52,090 --> 00:08:54,146 and you , I think alluded to this as 251 00:08:54,146 --> 00:08:56,368 well that the Israelis are there , they 252 00:08:56,368 --> 00:08:58,701 are doing an assessment of the hospital , 253 00:08:58,701 --> 00:09:00,812 they are on the ground . And so , you 254 00:09:00,812 --> 00:09:02,923 know , we'll continue to receive that 255 00:09:02,923 --> 00:09:04,979 um intelligence back as we get it to 256 00:09:04,979 --> 00:09:07,034 that . I'm not going to get ahead of 257 00:09:07,034 --> 00:09:08,923 anything right now . I don't have 258 00:09:08,923 --> 00:09:11,257 anything to , to preview . But if we do , 259 00:09:11,257 --> 00:09:13,534 you'll , you will be the first to know . 260 00:09:13,534 --> 00:09:15,423 Thank you . Um There have been 58 261 00:09:15,423 --> 00:09:17,590 attacks on us forces in Iraq and Syria 262 00:09:17,590 --> 00:09:19,534 over the last month . There's been 263 00:09:19,534 --> 00:09:21,646 seven since Sunday's US airstrikes in 264 00:09:21,646 --> 00:09:24,619 Syria . Um , so the rate is not slowing 265 00:09:24,630 --> 00:09:26,979 down of these attacks is the Pentagon 266 00:09:26,989 --> 00:09:28,933 waiting for a service member to be 267 00:09:28,933 --> 00:09:30,989 killed before taking stronger , more 268 00:09:30,989 --> 00:09:33,267 effective action . No , absolutely not . 269 00:09:33,267 --> 00:09:35,539 I mean , I , I , we would never want to 270 00:09:35,549 --> 00:09:37,771 see that we would never want that to be 271 00:09:37,771 --> 00:09:40,659 the outcome of any attack . Um I think , 272 00:09:41,270 --> 00:09:43,437 you know , taking a step back here a , 273 00:09:43,437 --> 00:09:45,437 as you mentioned , yes , there have 274 00:09:45,437 --> 00:09:47,714 been 58 attacks on our service members , 275 00:09:47,714 --> 00:09:50,729 um , since October 17th , um , all of 276 00:09:50,739 --> 00:09:52,969 which have been unsuccessful . Um , 277 00:09:52,979 --> 00:09:55,201 they have not caused significant damage 278 00:09:55,201 --> 00:09:57,201 to infrastructure and they have not 279 00:09:57,201 --> 00:09:59,423 caused significant injury to any of our 280 00:09:59,423 --> 00:10:01,590 service members and all of our service 281 00:10:01,590 --> 00:10:03,757 members who have been injured have all 282 00:10:03,757 --> 00:10:05,979 returned to . So , absolutely not . Are 283 00:10:05,979 --> 00:10:08,219 we waiting for an attack to inflict 284 00:10:08,229 --> 00:10:10,849 more damage , um , to alter our 285 00:10:10,859 --> 00:10:12,890 response ? I think you saw our 286 00:10:12,900 --> 00:10:15,719 responses of our last three strikes hit , 287 00:10:15,909 --> 00:10:17,853 um , one of them hit a command and 288 00:10:17,853 --> 00:10:20,020 control node , um , that was operating 289 00:10:20,020 --> 00:10:22,242 in a safe house , the others hit weapon 290 00:10:22,242 --> 00:10:24,020 storage facilities , um , and a 291 00:10:24,020 --> 00:10:27,030 training facility . So our attacks have 292 00:10:27,039 --> 00:10:29,750 significantly downgraded and degraded . 293 00:10:29,760 --> 00:10:33,349 I should say , um , the access that 294 00:10:33,359 --> 00:10:35,330 these militia groups have to these 295 00:10:35,340 --> 00:10:38,030 weapons . And so , um , we're not , 296 00:10:38,039 --> 00:10:40,261 we're not waiting on something to act . 297 00:10:40,261 --> 00:10:42,483 We are , we have responded and if there 298 00:10:42,483 --> 00:10:44,659 are more attacks , um , we will 299 00:10:44,669 --> 00:10:46,725 certainly respond um , at a time and 300 00:10:46,725 --> 00:10:49,710 place of our choosing totally separate 301 00:10:49,719 --> 00:10:51,650 topic on the audit . Uh , so the 302 00:10:51,659 --> 00:10:53,826 Pentagon just failed its sixth audit , 303 00:10:53,826 --> 00:10:56,119 I believe . Um , what message are you 304 00:10:56,130 --> 00:10:58,352 concerned that sends a bad message to , 305 00:10:58,352 --> 00:11:01,030 um , us , adversaries or us allies ? 306 00:11:01,039 --> 00:11:03,349 And if the Pentagon can't pass its own 307 00:11:03,359 --> 00:11:05,359 audit , how can the American people 308 00:11:05,359 --> 00:11:07,303 trust what weapons it's sending to 309 00:11:07,303 --> 00:11:10,530 Ukraine and Israel ? Um , well , we're 310 00:11:10,539 --> 00:11:12,761 working on improving our process , um , 311 00:11:12,909 --> 00:11:15,169 while it wasn't the results that we 312 00:11:15,179 --> 00:11:17,690 wanted , um , we certainly are learning 313 00:11:17,700 --> 00:11:21,250 each time an audit passes and , uh , 314 00:11:21,440 --> 00:11:23,551 you know , it's , it's a continuing , 315 00:11:23,551 --> 00:11:25,662 it's a continuing and ongoing process 316 00:11:25,662 --> 00:11:27,829 that this building is assessing . Um , 317 00:11:27,829 --> 00:11:30,051 one of the things that the audit did do 318 00:11:30,051 --> 00:11:32,218 this time around was it informed how , 319 00:11:32,218 --> 00:11:34,107 um , what we had for how we could 320 00:11:34,107 --> 00:11:38,080 supply Ukraine and then when , um , the 321 00:11:38,090 --> 00:11:40,919 events of October 7th happened and um , 322 00:11:40,929 --> 00:11:43,599 the need to assess what we could supply 323 00:11:43,609 --> 00:11:46,450 Israel , um , we were informed very 324 00:11:46,460 --> 00:11:48,719 much by the results of the audit from , 325 00:11:48,729 --> 00:11:51,239 you know , our , our looking all across 326 00:11:51,250 --> 00:11:53,710 the entire admin uh entire building 327 00:11:53,719 --> 00:11:55,941 here . Um But also what we had provided 328 00:11:55,941 --> 00:11:57,780 for Ukraine . So again , it's a 329 00:11:57,789 --> 00:11:59,511 complicated process and it's a 330 00:11:59,511 --> 00:12:02,739 complicated um undertaking that this 331 00:12:02,750 --> 00:12:05,559 building has , has done . Um But we 332 00:12:05,570 --> 00:12:08,750 feel confident in what we are learning 333 00:12:08,760 --> 00:12:12,359 each time . Natasha . Um The Pentagon 334 00:12:12,369 --> 00:12:14,425 keeps saying that there have been no 335 00:12:14,425 --> 00:12:16,536 serious injuries from these attacks , 336 00:12:16,536 --> 00:12:18,758 but more than two dozen service members 337 00:12:18,758 --> 00:12:20,813 have suffered traumatic brain injury 338 00:12:20,813 --> 00:12:23,091 which seems like a very serious injury . 339 00:12:23,091 --> 00:12:25,091 So I'm just wondering , how are you 340 00:12:25,091 --> 00:12:24,190 defining that ? And how are you 341 00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:26,440 defining unsuccessful ? And then my 342 00:12:26,450 --> 00:12:28,394 second question is if you have any 343 00:12:28,394 --> 00:12:30,450 updates on the five , the search for 344 00:12:30,450 --> 00:12:32,672 the search and recovery efforts for the 345 00:12:32,672 --> 00:12:34,728 five special operations soldiers who 346 00:12:34,728 --> 00:12:36,894 died last week . Yeah . Um , I'll take 347 00:12:36,894 --> 00:12:39,172 the last one first . So of course , um , 348 00:12:39,172 --> 00:12:41,339 I don't , I can't remember if I , even 349 00:12:41,339 --> 00:12:43,561 if I address this last time . But , you 350 00:12:43,561 --> 00:12:45,728 know , that's our thoughts and prayers 351 00:12:45,728 --> 00:12:47,950 are , of course , with the families who 352 00:12:47,950 --> 00:12:50,117 lost their loved ones . Um , over this 353 00:12:50,117 --> 00:12:52,006 last weekend in a , in a training 354 00:12:52,006 --> 00:12:54,228 incident . Um , in terms of any updates 355 00:12:54,228 --> 00:12:56,394 on those service members , I , I would 356 00:12:56,394 --> 00:12:55,700 refer you to the army , they would have 357 00:12:55,710 --> 00:12:58,700 the latest , uh , for you . Um , in 358 00:12:58,710 --> 00:13:00,710 terms of the injuries again , I , I 359 00:13:00,710 --> 00:13:02,789 know TB , I , of course , that's 360 00:13:02,799 --> 00:13:05,049 something that , um , any time one of 361 00:13:05,059 --> 00:13:06,892 our service members is injured , 362 00:13:06,892 --> 00:13:08,726 whether it's serious or not , we 363 00:13:08,726 --> 00:13:10,559 certainly take it seriously as a 364 00:13:10,559 --> 00:13:12,781 department . Um , you know , two of our 365 00:13:12,781 --> 00:13:15,003 service members did go to launch school 366 00:13:15,003 --> 00:13:16,948 for further evaluation . They were 367 00:13:16,948 --> 00:13:19,059 returned to duty soon after . Um , so 368 00:13:19,059 --> 00:13:21,226 of course we take any injuries serious 369 00:13:21,226 --> 00:13:23,392 seriously , but these were not serious 370 00:13:23,392 --> 00:13:25,615 injuries . And I think that's important 371 00:13:25,615 --> 00:13:24,669 to remember 372 00:13:33,570 --> 00:13:36,140 the United States took military action 373 00:13:36,150 --> 00:13:38,090 three different times and fully 374 00:13:38,099 --> 00:13:40,099 degraded some of their faith . So I 375 00:13:40,099 --> 00:13:42,321 think , um , in terms of our response , 376 00:13:42,330 --> 00:13:44,552 we've been very effective in responding 377 00:13:44,559 --> 00:13:46,615 back and sending a message to Iran . 378 00:13:50,340 --> 00:13:52,510 Can you say how close the drone got to 379 00:13:52,520 --> 00:13:54,853 the ship ? I can't say how close it got . 380 00:13:54,853 --> 00:13:56,909 I'm , I'm not , I , I don't actually 381 00:13:56,909 --> 00:13:59,076 know how close it got but it got close 382 00:13:59,076 --> 00:14:01,187 enough to the ship that the commander 383 00:14:01,187 --> 00:14:03,520 felt that it needed to engage the drone . 384 00:14:03,520 --> 00:14:05,631 And uh can you say what weapon system 385 00:14:05,631 --> 00:14:07,631 the ship used to engage the drone ? 386 00:14:08,229 --> 00:14:10,340 Coming back to the audit ? The famous 387 00:14:10,340 --> 00:14:13,140 failed verb got , I was , you know , 388 00:14:13,150 --> 00:14:15,317 Liz took your question . I felt like I 389 00:14:15,317 --> 00:14:17,428 knew you were coming around to this . 390 00:14:17,428 --> 00:14:21,270 So yeah , the the the disclaimer 391 00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:23,510 issue . What are the , what do the best 392 00:14:23,520 --> 00:14:26,539 minds in the building uh assess when 393 00:14:26,549 --> 00:14:28,771 you may get a clean audit opinion ? How 394 00:14:28,771 --> 00:14:30,938 many years might that be since getting 395 00:14:30,938 --> 00:14:33,160 the sixth audit took years and years to 396 00:14:33,160 --> 00:14:35,438 prepare ? Is there a ballpark estimate ? 397 00:14:35,438 --> 00:14:37,549 You can give , how many years will it 398 00:14:37,549 --> 00:14:39,605 take to get a clean audit opinion at 399 00:14:39,605 --> 00:14:42,020 all ? 29 of these component audits ? 400 00:14:42,190 --> 00:14:44,301 You know , Tony , I'm not gonna lie , 401 00:14:44,301 --> 00:14:46,579 I'm not an expert on the audit , but I , 402 00:14:46,579 --> 00:14:48,746 what I can tell you is that we do have 403 00:14:48,746 --> 00:14:50,857 those experts in the building and I'm 404 00:14:50,857 --> 00:14:53,023 not gonna get ahead of them or predict 405 00:14:53,023 --> 00:14:55,023 on when we are going to get a clean 406 00:14:55,023 --> 00:14:57,246 audit . What I can say is every time we 407 00:14:57,246 --> 00:14:59,079 go through this process , we are 408 00:14:59,079 --> 00:15:02,059 learning , we are improving and um we 409 00:15:02,070 --> 00:15:04,460 put into place , uh , measures that 410 00:15:04,469 --> 00:15:07,556 certainly monitor how we spend money . 411 00:15:07,726 --> 00:15:09,782 But again , there are people in this 412 00:15:09,782 --> 00:15:11,782 building directly focused on that , 413 00:15:11,782 --> 00:15:13,948 that question . I mean , well , that's 414 00:15:13,948 --> 00:15:16,004 a hypothetical question that I can't 415 00:15:16,004 --> 00:15:18,337 really get it , get it , get into . And , 416 00:15:18,337 --> 00:15:20,448 well , I can't predict the future . I 417 00:15:20,448 --> 00:15:20,445 can't predict when we're gonna get to 418 00:15:20,455 --> 00:15:22,677 what you're asking and , and they won't 419 00:15:22,677 --> 00:15:24,677 be able to either . That's why each 420 00:15:24,677 --> 00:15:26,899 time we go through this audit process , 421 00:15:26,899 --> 00:15:29,066 even if it is our sixth time , we keep 422 00:15:29,066 --> 00:15:28,986 going through the process , we keep 423 00:15:28,995 --> 00:15:31,106 getting better and better at it . And 424 00:15:31,106 --> 00:15:33,211 when we get there , Tony , I , we'll 425 00:15:33,221 --> 00:15:35,221 let you know it's a known unknown . 426 00:15:37,992 --> 00:15:41,812 I question . And then , so , um 427 00:15:42,052 --> 00:15:45,392 you stated that , you know , uh the 428 00:15:45,401 --> 00:15:47,752 Hamas we're using as she hospitals to 429 00:15:47,762 --> 00:15:51,122 conduct uh their attacks . Uh 430 00:15:51,552 --> 00:15:53,719 And then you , you reference the , the 431 00:15:53,719 --> 00:15:55,830 assess intelligence assessment . When 432 00:15:55,830 --> 00:15:57,885 you , when you talk about this , can 433 00:15:57,885 --> 00:15:59,996 you be more specific or based on your 434 00:15:59,996 --> 00:16:02,219 assessment ? Do you have any proof that 435 00:16:02,219 --> 00:16:04,385 Hamas used the building itself , which 436 00:16:04,385 --> 00:16:06,552 is a big building or are you referring 437 00:16:06,552 --> 00:16:08,441 to the underneath the building in 438 00:16:08,441 --> 00:16:10,608 conducting these activities ? Well , I 439 00:16:10,608 --> 00:16:12,608 think if I'm not mistaken , you can 440 00:16:12,608 --> 00:16:14,496 correct me , but I think Al Shiva 441 00:16:14,496 --> 00:16:16,219 Hospital actually has multiple 442 00:16:16,219 --> 00:16:18,441 buildings . Um So what we know is Hamas 443 00:16:18,441 --> 00:16:20,552 was using Al Shifa Hospital . I can't 444 00:16:20,552 --> 00:16:22,608 tell you specifically if it was just 445 00:16:22,608 --> 00:16:24,608 one building or multiple , but we , 446 00:16:24,608 --> 00:16:26,830 they were using the hospital to operate 447 00:16:26,830 --> 00:16:29,052 out of that should stand alone as a , a 448 00:16:29,052 --> 00:16:31,239 place of concern . You have many 449 00:16:31,250 --> 00:16:33,250 injured civilians getting treatment 450 00:16:33,250 --> 00:16:35,417 there . You have , um , babies who are 451 00:16:35,417 --> 00:16:37,640 just born . I don't think operating a 452 00:16:37,650 --> 00:16:39,761 terrorist cell out of a hospital is a 453 00:16:39,761 --> 00:16:41,983 way to conduct any operation , but they 454 00:16:41,983 --> 00:16:44,261 were doing that . So it's important to , 455 00:16:44,261 --> 00:16:46,372 to point that out . Um , but in terms 456 00:16:46,372 --> 00:16:48,428 of more specifics on when , where in 457 00:16:48,428 --> 00:16:50,650 the hospital that , that I don't have , 458 00:16:50,650 --> 00:16:52,872 that's still something that I've seen . 459 00:16:52,872 --> 00:16:55,039 Um , the ID F is there and doing their 460 00:16:55,039 --> 00:16:57,206 assessment of , you know , where the , 461 00:16:57,206 --> 00:16:59,317 um Hamas leadership was operating out 462 00:16:59,317 --> 00:17:01,428 of . But what I can say and what I've 463 00:17:01,428 --> 00:17:03,539 said before is that we know that they 464 00:17:03,539 --> 00:17:03,340 were operating out of that hospital . 465 00:17:04,219 --> 00:17:06,930 And then , um , so , and you said we 466 00:17:06,939 --> 00:17:08,995 don't want to see a firefight inside 467 00:17:08,995 --> 00:17:11,106 the hospital . I said that on Tuesday 468 00:17:11,106 --> 00:17:13,500 and again today , um , so the Israelis 469 00:17:13,510 --> 00:17:15,454 raided the hospital , there was no 470 00:17:15,454 --> 00:17:17,399 fight because they didn't find any 471 00:17:17,399 --> 00:17:19,739 Hamas fighters . Do you , does the 472 00:17:19,750 --> 00:17:22,020 Pentagon support these types of 473 00:17:22,030 --> 00:17:24,363 activities by the IDF raiding hospitals ? 474 00:17:24,363 --> 00:17:26,530 Well , look , that's something for the 475 00:17:26,530 --> 00:17:28,641 IDF to really speak to . We have been 476 00:17:28,641 --> 00:17:30,197 very clear with our Israeli 477 00:17:30,197 --> 00:17:32,252 counterparts with Minister Gallant . 478 00:17:32,252 --> 00:17:34,419 The secretary has , you know , engaged 479 00:17:34,419 --> 00:17:36,363 with him almost regularly , almost 480 00:17:36,363 --> 00:17:40,209 daily that um innocent civilians , um , 481 00:17:40,479 --> 00:17:43,319 people in hospitals that are seeking 482 00:17:43,329 --> 00:17:46,040 care , their lives need to be protected 483 00:17:46,189 --> 00:17:50,010 and they need to be , um , that the Id 484 00:17:50,020 --> 00:17:52,076 F as they conduct their operations , 485 00:17:52,076 --> 00:17:54,920 need to uphold humanitarian laws and 486 00:17:54,930 --> 00:17:57,329 the law of war . But that's how complex 487 00:17:57,339 --> 00:17:59,540 and complicated this entire operation 488 00:17:59,550 --> 00:18:01,717 is for the ID F the fact that you have 489 00:18:01,717 --> 00:18:04,339 a terrorist organization embedded or at 490 00:18:04,349 --> 00:18:06,293 least using and operating out of a 491 00:18:06,293 --> 00:18:09,260 hospital that makes any operation for 492 00:18:09,270 --> 00:18:11,650 any military in the world incredibly 493 00:18:11,660 --> 00:18:15,239 complex . And so , um that's something 494 00:18:15,250 --> 00:18:17,472 that the ID F would have to speak to in 495 00:18:17,472 --> 00:18:19,583 terms of their operations . But uh we 496 00:18:19,583 --> 00:18:21,806 never want to see any type of terrorist 497 00:18:21,806 --> 00:18:23,583 organization operating out of a 498 00:18:23,583 --> 00:18:25,528 hospital using it as a command and 499 00:18:25,528 --> 00:18:27,639 control center . Um Because that does 500 00:18:27,639 --> 00:18:29,750 put innocent lives at risk and that's 501 00:18:29,750 --> 00:18:29,229 what they were doing . That's they're 502 00:18:29,239 --> 00:18:31,319 putting these people using them as 503 00:18:31,329 --> 00:18:34,989 human shields . Um You know , for , for , 504 00:18:35,000 --> 00:18:37,222 for what ? And so I , I think it's just 505 00:18:37,222 --> 00:18:39,000 important you make you raise an 506 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:41,111 excellent question , but I think it's 507 00:18:41,111 --> 00:18:43,167 also important to remember why these 508 00:18:43,167 --> 00:18:45,167 people were put in that position to 509 00:18:45,167 --> 00:18:47,389 begin with WAFA . Thank you , Sabrina . 510 00:18:47,389 --> 00:18:49,900 So can you please update us uh on the 511 00:18:49,910 --> 00:18:52,869 department level of engagement in daily 512 00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:55,949 military operations in Gaza ? Uh And 513 00:18:55,959 --> 00:18:58,640 also when you say you're engaged , like 514 00:18:58,650 --> 00:19:01,454 there's daily uh interaction or you 515 00:19:01,464 --> 00:19:03,714 reach out to the Israelis on a daily 516 00:19:03,724 --> 00:19:07,435 basis , do they actually listen to you 517 00:19:07,444 --> 00:19:10,525 when you express concerns or ask 518 00:19:10,535 --> 00:19:13,305 questions about the military operations ? 519 00:19:13,314 --> 00:19:16,689 Sure . Um So as , as you 520 00:19:16,699 --> 00:19:18,977 mentioned , and I , and I've said , we , 521 00:19:18,977 --> 00:19:21,088 we do have daily conversation or near 522 00:19:21,088 --> 00:19:23,143 daily conversations with the Israeli 523 00:19:23,143 --> 00:19:25,310 government that's from the secretary . 524 00:19:25,310 --> 00:19:27,421 Um , but of course , there are levels 525 00:19:27,421 --> 00:19:29,421 all across this government that are 526 00:19:29,421 --> 00:19:31,588 also having those conversations . Um , 527 00:19:31,588 --> 00:19:33,699 I'm not gonna go into more details of 528 00:19:33,699 --> 00:19:33,280 those conversations other than , you 529 00:19:33,290 --> 00:19:35,346 know , we do put out a read out each 530 00:19:35,346 --> 00:19:37,457 time . You can certainly see a common 531 00:19:37,457 --> 00:19:39,457 thread of what we're emphasizing in 532 00:19:39,457 --> 00:19:41,512 those readouts that yes , Israel has 533 00:19:41,512 --> 00:19:43,512 the absolute right to defend itself 534 00:19:43,512 --> 00:19:45,623 against the horrific terrorist attack 535 00:19:45,623 --> 00:19:47,734 that happened on October 7th . But of 536 00:19:47,734 --> 00:19:49,750 course , we are urging as always in 537 00:19:49,760 --> 00:19:51,871 every single call , that humanitarian 538 00:19:51,871 --> 00:19:54,349 laws , um innocent civilians must be 539 00:19:54,359 --> 00:19:57,310 taken to account for any operation . Um 540 00:19:57,530 --> 00:19:59,752 You know , we do feel like they've been 541 00:19:59,752 --> 00:20:01,919 receptive to us . They , they continue 542 00:20:01,919 --> 00:20:04,086 to engage in our calls . Um And that's 543 00:20:04,086 --> 00:20:06,086 a good sign . We want to keep those 544 00:20:06,086 --> 00:20:08,197 lines of communication open . And I'm 545 00:20:08,197 --> 00:20:08,180 sorry , you had a first question that I 546 00:20:08,219 --> 00:20:11,160 the level of engagement , the level of 547 00:20:11,170 --> 00:20:13,729 engagement in the daily operation . So 548 00:20:13,739 --> 00:20:15,961 from the secretary and then of course , 549 00:20:15,961 --> 00:20:18,128 there are levels below him that engage 550 00:20:18,128 --> 00:20:20,295 with their Israeli counterparts . It's 551 00:20:20,295 --> 00:20:22,406 not just from the secretary's level . 552 00:20:22,406 --> 00:20:21,939 Of course , we have our policy team 553 00:20:21,949 --> 00:20:24,569 here . Um The joint staff engages , you 554 00:20:24,579 --> 00:20:27,189 know , on , on their side . Um So it's 555 00:20:27,199 --> 00:20:29,310 multiple , multiple levels , not just 556 00:20:29,310 --> 00:20:32,140 happening at the secretary level . Yeah . 557 00:20:32,579 --> 00:20:35,300 So uh when you say you have daily 558 00:20:35,310 --> 00:20:37,569 discussions and can you please give us 559 00:20:37,579 --> 00:20:41,290 a sense about like how the uh , like 560 00:20:41,300 --> 00:20:43,890 what's next ? What are the goals of the 561 00:20:43,900 --> 00:20:47,069 Israelis ? Uh , what's the way ahead in 562 00:20:47,079 --> 00:20:51,040 Gaza ? Like women on day ? 41 or 42 I 563 00:20:51,050 --> 00:20:53,939 believe . And the Israelis couldn't 564 00:20:53,949 --> 00:20:57,290 achieve much but killing civilians so 565 00:20:57,300 --> 00:21:00,079 far . So , do they share their goals 566 00:21:00,089 --> 00:21:02,930 with the , with you on a daily basis ? 567 00:21:02,939 --> 00:21:05,161 So , again , I'm not gonna get into the 568 00:21:05,161 --> 00:21:07,217 private conversations . We have read 569 00:21:07,217 --> 00:21:10,089 outs that we put out after every call . 570 00:21:10,099 --> 00:21:12,210 Um And then we have engagements below 571 00:21:12,210 --> 00:21:15,319 the secretary's level that um continue 572 00:21:15,329 --> 00:21:17,496 at , at all different levels and , you 573 00:21:17,496 --> 00:21:19,930 know , pretty regularly . Um I'm just 574 00:21:19,939 --> 00:21:22,106 not gonna get into any further details 575 00:21:22,106 --> 00:21:24,217 of those calls . We don't , we're not 576 00:21:24,217 --> 00:21:26,328 the idea if we're not on the ground , 577 00:21:26,328 --> 00:21:28,495 we're not um in their operations , but 578 00:21:28,495 --> 00:21:30,661 we certainly ask the questions that we 579 00:21:30,661 --> 00:21:32,883 feel that we need to ask . Um , we push 580 00:21:32,883 --> 00:21:35,106 where we feel that we need to push . Um 581 00:21:35,106 --> 00:21:37,930 And that's what good partners do . Um 582 00:21:37,939 --> 00:21:39,939 And so I'll just leave it at that , 583 00:21:39,939 --> 00:21:42,272 Chris . Oh , did you have one more ? Ok , 584 00:21:42,272 --> 00:21:44,439 one more . And then I'll go to Chris . 585 00:21:44,439 --> 00:21:46,606 So I just , I want to ask you about if 586 00:21:46,606 --> 00:21:48,439 you still have the same level of 587 00:21:48,439 --> 00:21:50,550 concern about a wider conflict in the 588 00:21:50,550 --> 00:21:52,810 region . Uh Even though like Hezbollah 589 00:21:52,819 --> 00:21:56,699 didn't uh show intentions to really 590 00:21:56,709 --> 00:21:59,359 engage in a comprehensive war uh with 591 00:21:59,369 --> 00:22:01,550 Israel so far . Yeah , we absolutely 592 00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:03,782 have concerns of this widening out to a 593 00:22:03,782 --> 00:22:05,949 wider regional conflict , which is why 594 00:22:05,949 --> 00:22:08,004 we have positioned the assets in the 595 00:22:08,004 --> 00:22:10,004 region that we have um with our two 596 00:22:10,004 --> 00:22:12,060 carrier strike groups , with uh more 597 00:22:12,060 --> 00:22:14,920 aircraft in the region . Um with the 20 598 00:22:15,140 --> 00:22:17,180 you also there um that remains un 599 00:22:17,189 --> 00:22:19,689 tasked but you know , ready in case 600 00:22:19,699 --> 00:22:22,459 needed . Um Absolutely , that's why 601 00:22:22,469 --> 00:22:24,525 we're concerned and that's why you , 602 00:22:24,525 --> 00:22:26,691 you saw the secretary at the direction 603 00:22:26,691 --> 00:22:28,858 of the president surge these assets to 604 00:22:28,858 --> 00:22:31,080 the region to , to make a statement and 605 00:22:31,080 --> 00:22:33,080 to make a statement to Iran that uh 606 00:22:33,080 --> 00:22:35,025 getting involved or , or seeking a 607 00:22:35,025 --> 00:22:36,969 wider regional conflict is not the 608 00:22:36,969 --> 00:22:39,136 right course of action . Now , I'll go 609 00:22:39,136 --> 00:22:41,890 to Chris , I just wanted to pick apart 610 00:22:41,900 --> 00:22:44,729 the uh degrade versus deterrence uh 611 00:22:44,739 --> 00:22:46,906 element in these airstrikes . You said 612 00:22:46,906 --> 00:22:48,906 they were um significantly degraded 613 00:22:48,906 --> 00:22:51,650 these militias capabilities . Um If the 614 00:22:51,660 --> 00:22:53,410 department deems these and the 615 00:22:53,420 --> 00:22:56,520 president deems these uh strikes um are 616 00:22:56,530 --> 00:22:58,697 necessary in the future , how feasible 617 00:22:58,697 --> 00:23:00,863 is it for the United States to destroy 618 00:23:00,863 --> 00:23:02,419 the blow up enough of their 619 00:23:02,419 --> 00:23:04,697 capabilities that even if they want to , 620 00:23:04,697 --> 00:23:07,089 they can't attack us forces ? Well , 621 00:23:07,099 --> 00:23:09,210 that's just getting into details that 622 00:23:09,210 --> 00:23:11,377 I'm not going to speak to because that 623 00:23:11,377 --> 00:23:13,710 gets to also an intelligence assessment . 624 00:23:13,710 --> 00:23:15,932 So what I can say is that when you were 625 00:23:15,932 --> 00:23:18,099 asking about degrade , degraded versus 626 00:23:18,099 --> 00:23:20,266 deterrent , I mean , we degraded these 627 00:23:20,266 --> 00:23:19,709 facilities enough that they can't use 628 00:23:19,719 --> 00:23:21,775 them anymore , so they're completely 629 00:23:21,775 --> 00:23:24,579 destroyed . So uh the ammunition or the 630 00:23:24,589 --> 00:23:26,533 weapon storage facility that is in 631 00:23:26,533 --> 00:23:29,770 Syria that we just hit , um this past 632 00:23:29,780 --> 00:23:31,910 Sunday . Uh , those weapons are no 633 00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:34,031 longer usable . That means that those 634 00:23:34,031 --> 00:23:35,976 who are whatever groups were using 635 00:23:35,976 --> 00:23:38,031 those and wanting to inflict harm or 636 00:23:38,031 --> 00:23:40,229 more attacks on our troops can't use 637 00:23:40,239 --> 00:23:42,239 them anymore . So that's completely 638 00:23:42,239 --> 00:23:44,239 degraded their ability . Um , of at 639 00:23:44,239 --> 00:23:46,461 least another site to inflict damage on 640 00:23:46,461 --> 00:23:49,599 our troops . Joseph . Yeah . One on the 641 00:23:49,760 --> 00:23:52,680 drone . The MQ nine . Can you , can the 642 00:23:52,689 --> 00:23:54,911 Pentagon publicly attribute that to the 643 00:23:54,911 --> 00:23:57,189 houthis , that the launch , that drone ? 644 00:23:57,189 --> 00:23:59,411 I think it's , I mean , we know it came 645 00:23:59,411 --> 00:24:01,633 from Yemen again , we're still doing an 646 00:24:01,633 --> 00:24:03,745 assessment of the attribution , but I 647 00:24:03,745 --> 00:24:05,856 would have no reason to doubt that it 648 00:24:05,856 --> 00:24:05,680 would have come from the Houthis but 649 00:24:05,689 --> 00:24:07,856 it's , you know , not like they sent a 650 00:24:07,856 --> 00:24:10,609 note with it . Yeah , the second one on 651 00:24:10,619 --> 00:24:13,319 Israel a senior maybe that was more 652 00:24:13,329 --> 00:24:15,496 flippant than I needed to be . But you 653 00:24:15,496 --> 00:24:17,496 know what I mean ? Like we're still 654 00:24:17,496 --> 00:24:19,551 doing an assessment of , of the , of 655 00:24:19,551 --> 00:24:21,773 the ownership of , you know , who , who 656 00:24:21,773 --> 00:24:23,940 launched the drone , but we do know it 657 00:24:23,940 --> 00:24:26,218 came from Yemen . And uh earlier today , 658 00:24:26,218 --> 00:24:28,218 a senior defense official said that 659 00:24:28,218 --> 00:24:30,107 this department is involved uh in 660 00:24:30,107 --> 00:24:32,273 tracking civilian casualties in Gaza . 661 00:24:32,273 --> 00:24:34,670 Um obviously as , as a result of both 662 00:24:34,680 --> 00:24:36,859 sides but also the Israeli strikes in 663 00:24:36,869 --> 00:24:39,849 Gaza . Can you sev c involved ? Can you 664 00:24:39,859 --> 00:24:41,915 elaborate at all ? Um And is there a 665 00:24:41,915 --> 00:24:43,915 report that's gonna be coming out ? 666 00:24:43,915 --> 00:24:46,081 We're over a month into the conflict . 667 00:24:46,081 --> 00:24:47,803 Now , I'm not sure what you're 668 00:24:47,803 --> 00:24:49,619 referencing by keeping track of 669 00:24:49,630 --> 00:24:51,852 civilian casualties in Gaza . I haven't 670 00:24:52,459 --> 00:24:54,880 on us military support . I haven't seen 671 00:24:54,890 --> 00:24:57,057 that . I mean , again , we , we do our 672 00:24:57,057 --> 00:24:59,168 own assessments but I have nothing to 673 00:24:59,168 --> 00:25:01,300 read out of , um , as we get 674 00:25:01,310 --> 00:25:04,119 information . Um , you know , again , 675 00:25:04,130 --> 00:25:06,297 we're not on the ground here . We know 676 00:25:06,297 --> 00:25:08,369 that , um , the health ministry does 677 00:25:08,380 --> 00:25:10,380 put out , uh , civilian casualty 678 00:25:10,390 --> 00:25:12,501 numbers but that is run by Hamas . So 679 00:25:12,501 --> 00:25:14,501 we have to , you know , of course , 680 00:25:14,501 --> 00:25:16,723 take that with a bit of a grain of salt 681 00:25:16,723 --> 00:25:18,446 here , but I , I don't have an 682 00:25:18,446 --> 00:25:18,300 independent assessment on our side that 683 00:25:18,310 --> 00:25:20,410 we're doing right now . The Israelis 684 00:25:20,420 --> 00:25:22,476 that and obviously , they can't keep 685 00:25:22,476 --> 00:25:24,642 track of every single one when they're 686 00:25:24,642 --> 00:25:26,642 this high . The number are you guys 687 00:25:26,642 --> 00:25:28,920 asking them to keep track ? That's not , 688 00:25:28,920 --> 00:25:30,976 I mean , that's something that uh is 689 00:25:30,976 --> 00:25:30,250 going to be very difficult to keep 690 00:25:30,260 --> 00:25:32,371 track of . Um , and that , that's not 691 00:25:32,371 --> 00:25:34,538 something that I think we're directing 692 00:25:34,538 --> 00:25:36,760 them to do , but something that I think 693 00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:38,816 uh most armies , you know , in their 694 00:25:38,816 --> 00:25:40,927 operations would keep track of just , 695 00:25:40,927 --> 00:25:42,927 you know , general casualties , but 696 00:25:42,927 --> 00:25:45,459 we're not asking for a count every day . 697 00:25:45,500 --> 00:25:48,020 Um Again , we do our own assessments , 698 00:25:48,030 --> 00:25:50,252 but I just don't have anything more for 699 00:25:50,252 --> 00:25:53,069 you on that . Yeah , those Korea knows 700 00:25:53,079 --> 00:25:55,579 that they successfully uh test a whole 701 00:25:55,709 --> 00:25:58,189 solid the engine for intermediate range 702 00:25:58,199 --> 00:26:00,439 ballistic . So , so do you think that 703 00:26:00,449 --> 00:26:02,609 this engine is related to the Russian 704 00:26:02,619 --> 00:26:04,619 technology ? It's gonna be with you 705 00:26:04,619 --> 00:26:06,709 from Russia that I , I couldn't 706 00:26:06,719 --> 00:26:09,140 speculate on . I'm not sure . Yeah . 707 00:26:09,439 --> 00:26:12,599 Yes . Uh Thank you , Sabrina . Uh The 708 00:26:12,609 --> 00:26:15,010 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin 709 00:26:15,020 --> 00:26:17,609 Netanyahu , he shared a detailed uh 710 00:26:17,619 --> 00:26:21,119 animation um and the ID F as well of 711 00:26:21,130 --> 00:26:23,270 the Shifa Hospital and uh uh uh a 712 00:26:23,380 --> 00:26:26,770 detailed drawing of the Hamas uh 713 00:26:26,780 --> 00:26:29,880 possible uh you know , uh garrisons 714 00:26:29,890 --> 00:26:32,954 underneath the hospital building . So , 715 00:26:32,964 --> 00:26:35,035 uh so far , we saw only a couple of 716 00:26:35,045 --> 00:26:37,405 videos uh established by or uh 717 00:26:37,415 --> 00:26:40,564 broadcasted by the idea of social media 718 00:26:40,574 --> 00:26:42,645 shows us a couple of assault rifles 719 00:26:42,694 --> 00:26:45,724 only since you have very close contact 720 00:26:45,734 --> 00:26:47,956 with your Israeli counterparts . Do you 721 00:26:47,956 --> 00:26:51,255 have any information about solid uh 722 00:26:51,265 --> 00:26:55,084 proof of these uh animations that 723 00:26:55,689 --> 00:26:57,578 the Israeli Prime Minister shared 724 00:26:57,578 --> 00:26:59,969 before I can't speak to the animations 725 00:26:59,979 --> 00:27:02,201 or video that you're speaking about . I 726 00:27:02,201 --> 00:27:04,423 just haven't seen it . So I'm not , I'm 727 00:27:04,423 --> 00:27:06,590 it's hard for me to respond to exactly 728 00:27:06,590 --> 00:27:08,646 what you're referencing . Um We were 729 00:27:08,646 --> 00:27:10,479 very clear on when I came out on 730 00:27:10,479 --> 00:27:12,646 Tuesday and can reiterate that we know 731 00:27:12,646 --> 00:27:14,590 that the hospital was used as a um 732 00:27:14,590 --> 00:27:18,469 operation center for Hamas . 733 00:27:18,479 --> 00:27:20,423 They were using it , they were had 734 00:27:20,423 --> 00:27:23,489 their , you know , um I don't know if 735 00:27:23,500 --> 00:27:25,556 leadership but they had , they had , 736 00:27:25,556 --> 00:27:27,389 you know , militants in there um 737 00:27:27,389 --> 00:27:29,719 operating out of the the hospital , but 738 00:27:29,729 --> 00:27:32,329 I don't have more for you in terms of 739 00:27:32,339 --> 00:27:34,561 what you're referencing in terms of the 740 00:27:34,561 --> 00:27:37,239 video . Um Sorry , yeah , I have a 741 00:27:37,250 --> 00:27:39,472 double on Ukraine . So could you please 742 00:27:39,472 --> 00:27:41,583 provide a preview of the next Ukraine 743 00:27:41,583 --> 00:27:43,639 defense contact group meeting . Uh I 744 00:27:43,639 --> 00:27:45,694 believe it's gonna be the , the last 745 00:27:45,694 --> 00:27:45,589 meeting this year . So , uh , what's 746 00:27:45,599 --> 00:27:47,710 the focus going to be on ? And do you 747 00:27:47,710 --> 00:27:49,821 expect to hear any announcement about 748 00:27:49,821 --> 00:27:51,988 new aid packages , et cetera ? Um So I 749 00:27:51,988 --> 00:27:54,099 don't have a announcement yet for the 750 00:27:54,099 --> 00:27:56,155 next Ukraine Defense contact group , 751 00:27:56,155 --> 00:27:58,432 but you know that they meet uh monthly . 752 00:27:58,432 --> 00:28:00,599 And so , um , I think we should expect 753 00:28:00,599 --> 00:28:02,599 an announcement within the next few 754 00:28:02,599 --> 00:28:04,877 days of when the next one will be . Um , 755 00:28:04,877 --> 00:28:07,043 in terms of aid packages , you've seen 756 00:28:07,043 --> 00:28:09,369 us roll out pretty consistently aid 757 00:28:09,380 --> 00:28:12,729 packages uh for Ukraine . Um , we have 758 00:28:12,739 --> 00:28:15,780 had to parse down our support and our 759 00:28:15,790 --> 00:28:18,012 security assistance for Ukraine because 760 00:28:18,012 --> 00:28:19,846 we don't have additional funding 761 00:28:19,846 --> 00:28:21,901 because the supplemental hasn't been 762 00:28:21,901 --> 00:28:24,012 passed . So we just rolled out our um 763 00:28:24,012 --> 00:28:26,068 last presidential drawdown authority 764 00:28:26,068 --> 00:28:28,819 and I , uh I believe that was last week . 765 00:28:28,829 --> 00:28:31,310 Um Look , we , we're , when we're ready 766 00:28:31,319 --> 00:28:33,541 to roll out the next one , we certainly 767 00:28:33,541 --> 00:28:35,652 will . We know that Ukraine continues 768 00:28:35,652 --> 00:28:37,969 to face , um , and continues to 769 00:28:37,979 --> 00:28:40,201 endeavor and it's counter offensive and 770 00:28:40,201 --> 00:28:42,180 they need continued support on a 771 00:28:42,189 --> 00:28:45,020 regular basis . So , um , we know that 772 00:28:45,030 --> 00:28:47,086 we have to do that . We know that we 773 00:28:47,086 --> 00:28:49,252 have to continue to meet their needs . 774 00:28:49,252 --> 00:28:48,969 Um , and that's something that 775 00:28:48,979 --> 00:28:51,201 certainly will be discussed at the next 776 00:28:51,201 --> 00:28:53,312 Ukraine defense contact group . But , 777 00:28:53,312 --> 00:28:55,479 um , in terms of a package preview , I 778 00:28:55,479 --> 00:28:57,257 just don't have more for you to 779 00:28:57,257 --> 00:28:57,219 announce today . How long can you 780 00:28:57,229 --> 00:28:59,760 support Ukraine until before the 781 00:28:59,770 --> 00:29:01,659 Congress looks into new funding ? 782 00:29:01,659 --> 00:29:03,659 Because like the best packages were 783 00:29:03,659 --> 00:29:05,770 thinner and thinner . We saw . Well , 784 00:29:05,770 --> 00:29:07,659 that's because uh we don't have a 785 00:29:07,659 --> 00:29:09,826 supplemental . I mean , frankly that , 786 00:29:09,826 --> 00:29:09,619 that is why we requested an emergency 787 00:29:09,630 --> 00:29:12,469 supplemental package to provide funding 788 00:29:12,540 --> 00:29:14,869 for uh sorry , security assistance to 789 00:29:14,880 --> 00:29:16,979 Ukraine and also to backfill our own 790 00:29:16,989 --> 00:29:20,199 stocks . Um The supplemental again is , 791 00:29:20,209 --> 00:29:22,520 is in Congress . Uh we continue to urge 792 00:29:22,530 --> 00:29:24,739 Congress to pass a supplemental . Um 793 00:29:25,020 --> 00:29:27,353 It's , you know , a supplemental is put , 794 00:29:27,353 --> 00:29:29,989 put forward and , and package together 795 00:29:30,300 --> 00:29:32,300 because it's an emergency request . 796 00:29:32,300 --> 00:29:34,411 It's not part of the budget process . 797 00:29:34,411 --> 00:29:37,599 And so um we have a large amount that 798 00:29:37,609 --> 00:29:39,630 we want Congress to authorize for 799 00:29:39,640 --> 00:29:41,800 Ukraine and for Israel and for our 800 00:29:41,810 --> 00:29:43,921 investments in the Indo Pacific . And 801 00:29:43,921 --> 00:29:46,380 of course , um you know , for our own 802 00:29:46,800 --> 00:29:49,069 in our defense industrial base . Um So 803 00:29:49,079 --> 00:29:51,135 that's something that we're going to 804 00:29:51,135 --> 00:29:53,357 continue to urge Congress to pass . But 805 00:29:53,357 --> 00:29:55,579 you're absolutely right , you have seen 806 00:29:55,579 --> 00:29:57,579 smaller packages because we need to 807 00:29:57,579 --> 00:29:59,690 parse these out . Um because we don't 808 00:29:59,690 --> 00:30:01,912 know when Congress is going to pass our 809 00:30:01,912 --> 00:30:04,079 supplemental package . And so um we're 810 00:30:04,079 --> 00:30:06,023 continuing to talk with allies and 811 00:30:06,023 --> 00:30:07,857 partners . Uh We're not the only 812 00:30:07,857 --> 00:30:10,023 country here contributing to Ukraine's 813 00:30:10,023 --> 00:30:12,301 urgent battlefield needs . As you know , 814 00:30:12,301 --> 00:30:14,635 the Ukraine contact group is , you know , 815 00:30:14,635 --> 00:30:16,857 over 50 nations . So , um it's not that 816 00:30:16,857 --> 00:30:18,968 it's just the US supporting Ukraine , 817 00:30:18,968 --> 00:30:21,079 but the president has been very clear 818 00:30:21,079 --> 00:30:23,301 that we are going to stand with Ukraine 819 00:30:23,301 --> 00:30:25,412 for as long as it takes . And so that 820 00:30:25,412 --> 00:30:27,246 means , um , you know , Congress 821 00:30:27,246 --> 00:30:29,468 passing our supplemental request . Um , 822 00:30:29,468 --> 00:30:31,523 and we hope that they do that soon . 823 00:30:31,523 --> 00:30:33,729 For . How long do you think you still 824 00:30:33,739 --> 00:30:35,795 have them before Congress looks into 825 00:30:35,795 --> 00:30:37,683 that ? Like it's gonna be weeks , 826 00:30:37,683 --> 00:30:39,850 months or ? Yeah . Well , again , each 827 00:30:39,850 --> 00:30:42,017 package varies by dollar amount . So , 828 00:30:42,017 --> 00:30:44,295 um , you've seen some smaller packages , 829 00:30:44,295 --> 00:30:44,170 I'm not going to forecast how long 830 00:30:44,180 --> 00:30:46,013 that's going to last . Um , that 831 00:30:46,013 --> 00:30:48,069 certainly wouldn't do the Ukrainians 832 00:30:48,069 --> 00:30:50,180 any good . That wouldn't , that would 833 00:30:50,180 --> 00:30:52,236 really benefit the . Um , and so I'm 834 00:30:52,236 --> 00:30:52,079 just not gonna be able to , you know , 835 00:30:52,089 --> 00:30:54,300 give you a timeline on how long we're 836 00:30:54,310 --> 00:30:56,477 gonna be able to have these packages , 837 00:30:56,477 --> 00:30:58,643 um , continue to go forward . But what 838 00:30:58,643 --> 00:31:00,754 I can say and what I will continue to 839 00:31:00,754 --> 00:31:02,810 say is that we need Congress to pass 840 00:31:02,810 --> 00:31:04,866 that supplemental request . Yes . Uh 841 00:31:04,866 --> 00:31:07,088 You keep talking about the intelligence 842 00:31:07,088 --> 00:31:09,199 in the past tips that you believe the 843 00:31:09,199 --> 00:31:11,254 intelligence believes Hamas has used 844 00:31:11,254 --> 00:31:13,310 hospitals . Do you have intelligence 845 00:31:13,310 --> 00:31:15,421 that they currently are ? I have only 846 00:31:15,421 --> 00:31:17,588 the intelligence that I read out , the 847 00:31:17,588 --> 00:31:17,250 downgraded intelligence that I read out 848 00:31:17,260 --> 00:31:19,380 yesterday . Um , or sorry , I'm , I'm 849 00:31:19,390 --> 00:31:22,650 sorry , on Tuesday . Uh past tense , 850 00:31:22,660 --> 00:31:24,910 present tense , I don't want to parse 851 00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:27,219 out words here , but we know that Hamas 852 00:31:27,229 --> 00:31:29,689 has been using the hospital , the Al 853 00:31:29,790 --> 00:31:31,901 Shifa hospital and other hospitals in 854 00:31:31,901 --> 00:31:34,270 Gaza . Um I'm not going to get into 855 00:31:34,280 --> 00:31:37,479 more specifics on , you know what 856 00:31:37,489 --> 00:31:39,656 they're doing now , whereabouts all of 857 00:31:39,656 --> 00:31:41,711 that we know that the ID F has taken 858 00:31:41,711 --> 00:31:43,878 control of Al Shifa Hospital . Um So I 859 00:31:43,878 --> 00:31:46,045 don't have more to , to share with you 860 00:31:46,045 --> 00:31:47,989 on that front . It matters because 861 00:31:47,989 --> 00:31:50,100 under international law , you have to 862 00:31:50,100 --> 00:31:52,267 have proof that it's uh combatant is , 863 00:31:52,267 --> 00:31:54,433 is currently right then in that moment 864 00:31:54,433 --> 00:31:56,900 in the hospital again , when I read out 865 00:31:56,910 --> 00:31:59,077 the downgraded material , we felt very 866 00:31:59,077 --> 00:32:01,077 confident that Hamas was using that 867 00:32:01,077 --> 00:32:03,770 hospital um to conduct his operations . 868 00:32:03,920 --> 00:32:06,609 And as you saw in open source , um 869 00:32:06,619 --> 00:32:08,390 there have been um 870 00:32:09,750 --> 00:32:11,861 evidence of that , that the ID F is , 871 00:32:11,861 --> 00:32:13,972 is showing now and that's what I want 872 00:32:13,972 --> 00:32:16,194 to ask you . How would you characterize 873 00:32:16,194 --> 00:32:18,028 the video of the , that the ID F 874 00:32:18,028 --> 00:32:20,139 released ? They said it's irrefutable 875 00:32:20,139 --> 00:32:22,380 proof that Hamas was there . Do you , 876 00:32:22,390 --> 00:32:24,612 does the US agree ? I don't think we're 877 00:32:24,612 --> 00:32:26,834 disputing that Hamas was using Al Shifa 878 00:32:26,834 --> 00:32:29,001 hospital ? I mean , I read that out on 879 00:32:29,001 --> 00:32:31,112 Tuesday . I said very specifically Al 880 00:32:31,112 --> 00:32:33,279 Shifa is one of many hospitals in Gaza 881 00:32:33,279 --> 00:32:35,390 that Hamas uses to operate out of and 882 00:32:35,390 --> 00:32:37,699 to conduct their operations out of . So 883 00:32:37,709 --> 00:32:39,859 I'll let the ID F speak to their 884 00:32:39,869 --> 00:32:41,980 broader assessment . I mean , they're 885 00:32:41,980 --> 00:32:44,319 still ongoing right now . Um But I just 886 00:32:44,329 --> 00:32:46,107 don't have more for you or more 887 00:32:46,107 --> 00:32:48,218 intelligence to share and I'm frankly 888 00:32:48,218 --> 00:32:48,030 not going to do it from this podium . 889 00:32:49,329 --> 00:32:51,551 There's a video of a blurred laptop , a 890 00:32:51,551 --> 00:32:53,949 flak jacket , a handful of rifles that , 891 00:32:53,959 --> 00:32:56,070 that backs up what you've been saying 892 00:32:56,070 --> 00:32:58,403 that Hamas is operating in the hospital . 893 00:32:58,403 --> 00:33:00,403 I will , I'm happy to repeat what I 894 00:33:00,403 --> 00:33:02,348 said on Tuesday . But we the , the 895 00:33:02,348 --> 00:33:04,570 downgraded intelligence that I read out 896 00:33:04,570 --> 00:33:06,626 on Tuesday and then I will reiterate 897 00:33:06,626 --> 00:33:09,630 again today is that Hamas uses Al Shifa 898 00:33:09,640 --> 00:33:12,500 being one of them but hospitals in Gaza 899 00:33:12,520 --> 00:33:16,459 to conduct and to operate out of um and , 900 00:33:16,469 --> 00:33:18,660 and to further execute on terrorist 901 00:33:18,670 --> 00:33:22,280 actions within Gaza again , I'm just 902 00:33:22,290 --> 00:33:24,512 going to leave it at that . Thanks . Do 903 00:33:24,512 --> 00:33:26,568 you have a question back here ? Oh , 904 00:33:26,568 --> 00:33:28,568 sorry . Yes . As you mentioned that 905 00:33:28,568 --> 00:33:31,609 there were like 58 attacks against us 906 00:33:31,619 --> 00:33:35,420 service members since 17th of October . 907 00:33:35,430 --> 00:33:37,652 So do you have any plans to change your 908 00:33:37,652 --> 00:33:40,040 booster in Iraq and Syria , especially 909 00:33:40,109 --> 00:33:42,369 most of these attacks happen in that in 910 00:33:42,390 --> 00:33:44,680 these two countries ? And how do you 911 00:33:44,689 --> 00:33:48,209 see the Iraqi government respond or 912 00:33:48,219 --> 00:33:51,420 react to protect these spaces ? Do you 913 00:33:51,430 --> 00:33:53,939 believe they have the ability to 914 00:33:53,949 --> 00:33:56,829 protect these spaces ? So I think your 915 00:33:56,839 --> 00:34:00,020 question was on force posture changes 916 00:34:00,030 --> 00:34:02,252 within Syria and Iraq . So I don't have 917 00:34:02,252 --> 00:34:04,474 any force posture changes to announce . 918 00:34:04,474 --> 00:34:06,586 But as you know , um I can't remember 919 00:34:06,586 --> 00:34:08,697 the date but we did , we did announce 920 00:34:08,697 --> 00:34:10,808 that we were moving Patriot and Thaad 921 00:34:10,808 --> 00:34:12,959 Batteries into the region um to help 922 00:34:12,969 --> 00:34:14,802 protect our troops with more air 923 00:34:14,802 --> 00:34:16,913 defense . So that's something that we 924 00:34:16,913 --> 00:34:19,030 have do done to bolster our um 925 00:34:19,989 --> 00:34:21,989 protection measures of our , of our 926 00:34:21,989 --> 00:34:24,156 service members in both Iraq and Syria 927 00:34:24,156 --> 00:34:26,322 and elsewhere . Um And all the Patriot 928 00:34:26,322 --> 00:34:28,433 batteries are there and fully running 929 00:34:28,433 --> 00:34:30,378 and the Thaad Battery I believe is 930 00:34:30,378 --> 00:34:30,360 still making its way over , but I don't 931 00:34:30,370 --> 00:34:32,481 have any more force posture movements 932 00:34:32,481 --> 00:34:35,419 to announce what the government do . 933 00:34:35,429 --> 00:34:37,373 You think they have the ability to 934 00:34:37,373 --> 00:34:39,373 protect the basis that where the US 935 00:34:39,373 --> 00:34:42,459 troops are being uh like in uh in Anbar 936 00:34:42,469 --> 00:34:44,580 or in the north of Iraq ? We continue 937 00:34:44,580 --> 00:34:46,691 to work with the Iraqi government and 938 00:34:46,691 --> 00:34:48,802 their military in terms of protecting 939 00:34:48,802 --> 00:34:50,747 our troops . We are in Iraq at the 940 00:34:50,747 --> 00:34:52,969 invitation of the Iraqi government . So 941 00:34:52,969 --> 00:34:54,913 we certainly um work with them and 942 00:34:54,913 --> 00:34:57,080 partner with them and , and they are , 943 00:34:57,080 --> 00:34:59,247 you know , the , the secretary has had 944 00:34:59,247 --> 00:35:01,247 uh um calls with his counterpart on 945 00:35:01,247 --> 00:35:03,302 making sure that our service members 946 00:35:03,302 --> 00:35:05,302 are protected in those areas and we 947 00:35:05,302 --> 00:35:07,247 continue to engage them on , on in 948 00:35:07,247 --> 00:35:09,413 those conversations . Ok . Thank you . 949 00:35:10,250 --> 00:35:13,459 And then we got , we got , you said 55 950 00:35:13,469 --> 00:35:15,580 attacks since October 17 , we're 951 00:35:15,590 --> 00:35:17,590 hearing different numbers . Is that 952 00:35:17,590 --> 00:35:19,757 what's the what ? Sorry I can give you 953 00:35:19,757 --> 00:35:21,868 that rundown . So as of today , there 954 00:35:21,868 --> 00:35:24,090 have been approximately 58 attacks . So 955 00:35:24,090 --> 00:35:26,389 that's 27 in Iraq and 30 at 31 attacks 956 00:35:26,399 --> 00:35:27,050 in Syria . 957 00:35:45,219 --> 00:35:47,108 And any other information that is 958 00:35:47,108 --> 00:35:50,409 available to you ? How recent did Hamas 959 00:35:50,419 --> 00:35:53,500 leadership use Al Shifa Hospital ? Well , 960 00:35:53,510 --> 00:35:55,066 that would get into further 961 00:35:55,066 --> 00:35:57,121 intelligence assessments that I just 962 00:35:57,121 --> 00:35:59,232 can't get into from the , from , from 963 00:35:59,232 --> 00:36:01,343 here . Um Again , as I as I mentioned 964 00:36:01,343 --> 00:36:03,454 earlier , but , and I told you , we , 965 00:36:03,454 --> 00:36:05,566 we feel very confident that Hamas was 966 00:36:05,566 --> 00:36:07,677 using Al Shifa and other hospitals uh 967 00:36:07,677 --> 00:36:09,899 to conduct operations out of . Um But I 968 00:36:09,899 --> 00:36:12,066 just , in terms of when , where all of 969 00:36:12,066 --> 00:36:14,177 that um more specifics , I just can't 970 00:36:14,177 --> 00:36:16,399 get into those details . Did you have a 971 00:36:16,399 --> 00:36:18,621 question just to clarify for the record 972 00:36:18,621 --> 00:36:20,454 and for those watching , don't , 973 00:36:20,454 --> 00:36:22,510 doesn't the Pentagon have about $4.9 974 00:36:22,510 --> 00:36:24,566 billion of authority left for PDAs . 975 00:36:24,566 --> 00:36:26,732 They just don't have , they got like a 976 00:36:26,732 --> 00:36:28,732 billion dollar stuff to replace the 977 00:36:28,732 --> 00:36:28,570 equipment , but they , you can give 978 00:36:28,580 --> 00:36:31,120 like 4 billion , 4.9 billion and PD A 979 00:36:31,129 --> 00:36:33,185 is going forward . I'm not , I'm not 980 00:36:33,185 --> 00:36:35,407 trying to minimize it . I'm just trying 981 00:36:35,407 --> 00:36:37,407 to tell you that . Yes , we do have 982 00:36:37,407 --> 00:36:39,573 $4.9 billion and from the recalculated 983 00:36:39,573 --> 00:36:41,573 PD A funds that we continue to draw 984 00:36:41,573 --> 00:36:43,629 down of . That's , that's what we're 985 00:36:43,629 --> 00:36:45,907 using , but we only have 1.1 . I leave , 986 00:36:45,907 --> 00:36:48,840 left to restock our own inventories . 987 00:36:48,850 --> 00:36:51,072 And so again , we know Ukraine is gonna 988 00:36:51,072 --> 00:36:53,294 need more than that . And so that's why 989 00:36:53,294 --> 00:36:55,517 we did submit that supplemental request 990 00:36:55,517 --> 00:36:57,683 and a lot of that supplemental will be 991 00:36:57,683 --> 00:36:59,906 used also to replenish our own stocks . 992 00:36:59,906 --> 00:37:02,017 I just wanna make the point that it's 993 00:37:02,017 --> 00:37:04,072 not , it's not getting cut off yet . 994 00:37:04,072 --> 00:37:06,128 You got 4 billion $5 billion left to 995 00:37:06,128 --> 00:37:08,350 play out however long that goes . Yep . 996 00:37:08,350 --> 00:37:10,572 That's correct . Yeah . Thank you . All 997 00:37:10,572 --> 00:37:10,000 right . Thanks , everyone .