2024-01-10 08:19:21
1/10/2024-|Last update: 1/10/2024 12:46 AM (Mecca time)
Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in the United States said that US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is receiving care following suffering a urinary tract infection following undergoing surgery last December to treat prostate cancer.
The center said in a statement issued by the US Department of Defense (the Pentagon): “He got rid of his infection. He continues to progress and we expect a full recovery, but this may be a slow process.”
“During his stay, Secretary Austin never lost consciousness, nor was he ever under general anesthesia,” the statement added.
For its part, the White House said that US President Joe Biden did not learn that the Secretary of Defense (70 years old) had prostate cancer until yesterday, Tuesday, minutes following it was revealed to the public.
Austin – a retired general who led US forces in Iraq – was transferred on January 1 to Walter Reed Military Medical Center, a fact that the Department of Defense concealed from the Americans, the White House, and Congress for most of last week, which sparked widespread political criticism.
Austin’s representative, Kathleen Hicks, also remained unaware of the matter for several days, even following she was asked during a vacation in Puerto Rico to take over some of his duties on January 2.
Republican outrage
White House spokesman John Kirby said, “Biden was not informed until last Thursday that Secretary Austin was in the hospital. He was not informed until this morning, Tuesday, that the primary reason for his hospitalization was prostate cancer.”
Kirby added, “No one in the White House knew that Secretary Austin had prostate cancer until this morning, and the President was informed immediately followingward.”
Austin and Biden spoke on Saturday, and it is not yet clear why Biden did not know regarding Austin’s injury until yesterday, Tuesday.
Republicans considered the incident evidence of Austin’s dereliction of his duty. US Representative Mike Rogers wrote in a letter to Austin yesterday, Tuesday, in which he said, “In light of the wars in Ukraine and Israel, the idea that the White House and even your deputy did not understand the nature of your condition is completely unacceptable.”
Austin follows Biden directly in the pecking order in the US Army, and his duties require that he be available at any moment to address any crisis related to national security.
This includes always being ready to enter into secure communications with other officials in the event of an imminent nuclear attack, something that can be difficult in an intensive care unit bed.
Some prominent Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, called for Austin’s removal from office, but the Pentagon said he had no intention of resigning, and the White House said Biden was not seeking his removal.
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