US Defense Secretary Austin recovering following cancer surgery
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Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is healing from the consequences of his prostate cancer surgery and is allegedly actively working in the Department of Defense.
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Pentagon spokesman Air Force Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder pauses as he is asked about Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during a briefing at the Pentagon in Washington on January 9, 2024.(AP)
According to a statement by Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is now being treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center and is in good condition.
The Pentagon will offer regular updates on Secretary Austin's discharge from the hospital, though no precise timetable has been set.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is healing from the consequences of his prostate cancer surgery and is again actively working in the Department of Defense, according to Deputy Secretary of State Kathleen Hicks, who spoke to a US Space Force audience in Colorado Springs on Wednesday.
Hicks revealed that she spoke with Austin on Tuesday, adding that "[The secretary ] is on the mend and [is] in good spirits, and [he] is actively involved in the affairs of the department."
On Tuesday, Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Bethesda revealed that Austin was hospitalized in early January due to an infection from his prostate cancer surgery in late December.
According to a memo acquired by Axios, the White House is reviewing Cabinet practices for distributing authority following Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's unannounced hospitalization.
US President Joe Biden is not considering terminating Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin from his position, a White House source told Reuters Monday.
Austin kept the President and the public in the dark about his illness on New Year's Day for many days until admitting to "full responsibility" for the cover-up on Saturday.
Republicans in Congress responded angrily to revelations that the Pentagon waited several days to notify top officials about Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's illness. Some Republican senators have already demanded that Austin testify or be ousted due to what one has described as a "serious breakdown" in communication.
![In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had "engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)](https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2024/12/21/b4a69f2e-8682-43e4-9d37-49482b304ab3/3.png?v=2&format=webp "In a 2021 interview with Frontline by former US special representative James Jeffrey, he says he had \"engaged with [HTS] via backchannels while serving in President Trump’s State Department. (Al Mayadeen English; Illustrated by Batoul Chamas)")
