On Tuesday, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller held a press briefing.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 Good afternoon, everyone.
00:08 Raise this a little bit.
00:09 I am going to start with comments on a couple of things before going to your questions.
00:16 First off, as it relates to Georgia, earlier today the Georgian Parliament voted to override
00:22 the Georgian President's veto of an anti-democratic foreign influence bill that fails to conform
00:28 to European norms, effectively turning the bill into law.
00:31 The United States condemns this action.
00:34 In passing this law, the ruling Georgian Dream Party moved the country farther away from
00:39 the European integration path and ignored the Euro-Atlantic aspirations of the Georgian
00:44 people who have taken to the streets for weeks to oppose this law.
00:48 The Georgian Dream has disregarded the Council of Europe's Venice Commission legal assessment
00:53 and that of Georgia's closest partners, who made clear their concerns that the law would
00:56 stigmatize civil society and media and limit fundamental freedoms.
01:01 The ruling party's actions and anti-Western rhetoric threaten Georgia's democratic trajectory,
01:05 future economic security, EU membership, and also put the U.S.-Georgia relationship at
01:11 risk.
01:12 Last week, Secretary Blinken announced that anyone who undermines democratic processes
01:16 or institutions in Georgia, as well as their immediate family members, may be found ineligible
01:21 for U.S. visas under a newly announced policy precluding travel to the United States.
01:26 The United States has also launched a comprehensive review of bilateral cooperation between the
01:31 United States and Georgia.
01:33 As Secretary Blinken said last week, we will take Georgia Dream's actions into account
01:39 as we decide our own.
01:41 The United States continues to stand by the Georgian people as they work for a democratic
01:44 and Western future.
01:46 It is unfortunate that Georgia's leaders are choosing to forego the steps needed to advance
01:50 Georgia in the Western direction that its people want.
01:53 Turning to Gaza, we are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life in Rafah over the
01:59 weekend.
02:00 Like many of you, I'm sure, I watched the videos that emerged from the fire that broke
02:04 out in the camp there this weekend.
02:07 Those images were heartbreaking.
02:10 And I know the pain that those families are suffering through must be unimaginable, especially
02:16 those who lost children and those who have lost family members for a repeated number
02:22 of times.
02:23 As we have said before, Israel has a right to go after the Hamas terrorists responsible
02:27 for the cold-blooded murder of civilians, as appears to have been Israel's aim here.
02:33 And Hamas should stop hiding behind civilians in Gaza.
02:37 But Israel also has the obligation to do everything possible to minimize civilian harm as it carries
02:42 out its operations.
02:45 As soon as the United States saw reports of this incident, we reached out to the government
02:48 of Israel to express our deep concern over what happened, ask for more information, and
02:53 urge them to undertake a full investigation.
02:57 Earlier today, Israel announced the results of a preliminary investigation and said that
03:00 this strike was carried out using the smallest bomb in their arsenal, targeting terrorists
03:04 1.7 kilometers away from the al-Mawassi area where this fire took place.
03:09 The IDF is continuing to investigate this matter and has promised that its investigation
03:13 will be swift, comprehensive, and transparent.
03:17 We will be watching those results closely.
03:20 And we will continue to emphasize to Israel their obligation to comply fully with international
03:24 humanitarian law, minimize the impact of their operations on civilians, and maximize the
03:29 flow of humanitarian assistance to those in need.
03:32 With that, Ellen, do you want to start us off?
03:35 Hi, Matt.
03:36 Yeah, thank you.
03:37 This weekend, the death toll in Gaza passed 36,000 Palestinians.
03:43 There are now 1 million Palestinians displaced by Israeli operations in Rafa and in the north.
03:50 There hasn't been much at all of humanitarian aid that can be delivered within Rafa - within,
03:56 I'm sorry, within Gaza for the past several weeks.
04:03 We all saw the pictures, as you said, of this weekend of the civilians on fire in their
04:09 tents and the child who had their head blown off, if that was an ethnic video.
04:16 And today, numerous witnesses are reporting to news outlets that tanks have moved into
04:27 the center of Rafa.
04:29 And today, we had a strike, an Israeli strike, according to the Gaza health officials, on
04:36 a tent that killed 21 civilians in an area that was not an evacuation area, with 13 of
04:45 the civilians as women who were therefore noncombatants.
04:50 And none of this, obviously, has crossed the red lines that President Biden has said or
04:57 the U.S. has said against - about providing - improving humanitarian conditions or not
05:03 going into the center of Rafa in a way that harms civilians.
05:07 Can you tell me why it hasn't crossed those red lines, why the current humanitarian situation
05:12 is acceptable, and why the situation in Rafa is acceptable right now?
05:14 MR.
05:15 RATHKE: So let me just speak - because there was a lot in the lead-up to that question,
05:17 let me speak to some of the premises.
05:20 So first of all, with respect to reports of tanks in central Rafa today, it's not something
05:27 we have seen or have been able to verify at this point.
05:29 I've obviously seen those reports.
05:31 What Israel has said is that they are conducting operations along the Philadelphia corridor
05:37 and on the outskirts of Rafa, but we will continue to look in that and discuss it with
05:43 the Israeli Government.
05:44 With respect to this reported strike in the so-called safer area, in the Mawassi camp,
05:51 I know Israel has come out publicly and said they did not conduct such a strike.
05:54 So again, it's something that we will press them for more information to try to find out
05:57 what exactly, if anything, happened and where these reports are coming from and what the
06:00 apparent conflict seems to be.
06:03 With respect to humanitarian assistance, I do want to speak to some potential improvement
06:08 that we have seen.
06:09 So first of all, to your point about humanitarian assistance not getting into Gaza, there has
06:13 been a great deal of humanitarian assistance that has been flowing --
06:15 QUESTION: I said delivered.
06:16 MR.
06:17 RATHKE: Well, there has been a bunch - a great deal that has been delivered into the north
06:20 of Gaza over the past few weeks, something that happened because of the United States
06:24 intervention and reversed a situation prior to that intervention where almost no aid was
06:30 getting into northern Gaza.
06:33 With respect to southern Gaza, it continues to be a real challenge.
06:37 There are a number of things that have made that a challenge, one being the closing of
06:40 Rafa Gate, two being obviously the military kinetic operations that are taking place there
06:46 that make it tough.
06:47 But that said, we saw a number of commercial trucks going in last week, which are not a
06:52 replacement for humanitarian assistance but are important for a number of reasons.
06:57 And then the President was able to secure an agreement with President el-Sisi on Friday
07:01 to allow the UN trucks that have been in Egypt to move to Israel, make it to Kerem Shalom,
07:07 and we are going to continue to work to get that aid delivered into Gaza.
07:10 So to the point of your question, it is important not just that it make it to Kerem Shalom,
07:14 but it make it through and be delivered.
07:17 So we have seen some of that assistance, but it continues to be an ongoing challenge to
07:21 try to deliver humanitarian assistance in the wake of military operations.
07:25 So it's something that we're continuing to work through.
07:27 With respect – having addressed all of those various premises – with respect to the broader
07:31 question, look, we have made clear what our policy is with respect to Rafa.
07:36 We do not want to see major military operations take place there in the way that we saw them
07:40 take place in Khan Yunis and in Gaza City.
07:46 At this point, we have not seen a military operation on the scale of those previous operations.
07:50 And if you just look at the number of brigades that were in Gaza City, that were in Khan
07:54 Yunis, this so far is a different type of military operation.
07:58 But that said, it's something that we are watching very closely, something that we are
08:02 in touch with the Israeli Government about, and we will continue to press to them the
08:06 importance of conducting legitimate operations to go after Hamas in a way that minimizes
08:10 civilian harm.
08:11 Yeah.
08:12 Jake Sullivan said recently that the U.S. – United States would be watching very carefully
08:18 the level of – number of deaths, actually, and level of destruction in Rafa specifically.
08:26 Given the number of deaths and the level of destruction that we are seeing in Rafa – and
08:32 today you have Israeli tanks that entered the zone, and you have already over 800,000,
08:38 if not more, Palestinians who fled the zone – has Israel crossed the red lines that
08:48 Biden has – that the President has given?
08:51 It is something that we – when it comes to their military operations in Rafa, as I
08:56 just said in response to Ellen's question, it's something that we continue to look
09:01 at very closely.
09:03 And as I just said, it so far is a different operation than we've seen in Khan Yunis
09:09 and that we saw in Gaza City, but this is something that we watch every day and something
09:13 that we engage with the Government of Israel about every day as we talk to them about what
09:18 their plans are and what U.S. policy might be, and as we talk to them about the need
09:22 to minimize civilian harm and conduct their strikes in a way that minimizes civilian harm.
09:27 And I know that the question is not just about the fire that broke out over the weekend that
09:33 killed upwards of 40 individuals, and I know injured many more, but it is about everything.
09:40 And we look at everything, but I do think it's important when you look at that strike
09:43 to find out what the actual cause of the fire is.
09:46 Israel has said that it might have been that there was a Hamas ammo dump near the area
09:51 where they took the strike, which, as I said, they claim was 1.7 kilometers outside the
09:56 area where they had told civilians to move.
09:59 That's a very important factual question that needs to be answered when it comes to
10:03 making these sort of assessments.
10:04 So what we are pressing the Government of Israel to do is to conduct an investigation,
10:08 present those facts publicly, so we, along with the rest of the world, can make the kind
10:12 of assessments that we need to be able to do.
10:14 So, I mean, there has been a lot of mistakes like this, correct?
10:21 Just first let me establish, does the United States believe that Israel, what happened
10:26 over the weekend, was a result of a mistake?
10:29 So we are going to wait to see the full results of the investigation.
10:33 We've seen, as I said, the preliminary investigation where Israel has claimed, Israel has said
10:37 that they've used the smallest bomb available to them to go after a very precise target.
10:43 This wasn't a 500-pound bomb or a 2,000-pound bomb.
10:46 I think it was like a 37-kilogram or 37-pound bomb, a much smaller weapon designed to hit
10:54 one site 1.7 kilometers away from the Mawassi area where they have told civilians to move.
11:02 Now, that said, clearly something happened.
11:05 And what happened?
11:06 We've seen Israel's claim that it might have been the results of hitting a Hamas ammo depot.
11:11 It's not clear to me that they actually know.
11:14 But they need to find out.
11:15 They need to conduct the investigation.
11:18 And we're going to eagerly await the investigation and press them to make sure that the results
11:22 of that investigation are presented openly and transparently to us and to the world.
11:26 Right.
11:27 So if we take the initial statements, Netanyahu said it was a tragic mistake.
11:34 There has been a lot of headlines with that, with those same comments, right?
11:38 World Central Kitchen killings were also a tragic mistake.
11:43 There was another one late last year on Magazi camp that Israel has also called a mistake.
11:48 Those are the two that comes to mind.
11:51 There are, I can find, numerous other incidents.
11:54 Is the United States comfortable sending this many weapons to an army that seems to be making
12:02 a series of mistakes?
12:03 So let me say this.
12:05 We are not comfortable with the loss of civilian life in any way, shape, or form.
12:10 And I think we have made that quite clear.
12:12 Number two, with respect to each of these incidents, it's important to find out what
12:16 happened, why it happened, and who was at fault.
12:19 And so it's important that this investigation proceed before we make any assessments that
12:24 will help you answer that question.
12:25 We've seen preliminary results.
12:27 We want to see the full results.
12:29 That said, and I'll say in previous investigations, for example, with the World Central Kitchen
12:33 investigation strike, Israel did conduct an investigation and presented those findings
12:39 publicly and then made changes in response to those findings, which we thought it was
12:43 very important that they do.
12:45 This seems to be a very different kind of strike, whereas in the World Central Kitchen
12:48 they made a mistake about what the target was, and they thought they were targeting
12:51 Hamas terrorists, and they were not.
12:53 That was a very clear mistake.
12:54 In this instance, they were targeting what seems to be legitimate targets, and they were
12:58 successful in taking out those targets.
13:00 And then likely as a result, there was this fire that broke out.
13:05 It's not clear how it was ignited, especially, as I said, when it's over a kilometer and
13:09 a half from the location of the strike.
13:11 We need to find out how that happened.
13:12 And if there are procedures that they need to take, that they need to put in place to
13:15 prevent it from happening again, we expect them to put those procedures in place.
13:19 When it comes to our policy, we have made clear that we oppose any full-scale military
13:24 operation and that what the ramifications to our policy would be of them launching such
13:28 an operation in Rafa.
13:30 We haven't seen them do that yet.
13:32 But as I said, it is something that we are watching every day and are in communication
13:36 with them every day.
13:37 QUESTION: Right.
13:38 But in – sorry, a couple of more things.
13:41 In terms of the accountability measures, you say that after the WCK attack there has been
13:46 some changes.
13:47 But if we look at other incidents, the killing of Shereen Abu Akhle, for example, and there
13:54 has been a series of different incidents that involved a large amount of killings of civilians,
14:02 it doesn't look like the accountability measures are reprimanding certain forces.
14:07 Are those really enough for the United States?
14:10 I mean, we're talking about, like, the death of actual people here.
14:15 We're talking about loss of life.
14:16 Is the United States comfortable that several soldiers here and there are reprimanded?
14:22 But what seems to continue to happen is there is a pattern of behavior, and that doesn't
14:28 get to change in a large scale.
14:30 Are you okay with that?
14:31 MR.
14:32 RATHKE: So what we expect Israel to do is the same thing that we expect of our own military
14:37 and the same thing that we expect of all our democratic allies and partners.
14:40 We expect when people inside their military make mistakes or when they operate outside
14:48 of compliance with their rules of engagement, their own rules of engagement, or they operate
14:54 outside of compliance with international humanitarian law, we expect them to fully investigate what
14:58 happened.
14:59 We expect them to make changes to policy if changes to policy need to be made.
15:03 And we expect them to hold people accountable if accountability is appropriate.
15:06 Now, with respect to the premise of your question, we're still in the middle of a conflict, and
15:11 they have a number of investigations open, including criminal investigations into people
15:15 who potentially violated international humanitarian law or violated Israeli law or violated the
15:21 IDF's code of conduct.
15:22 So I think it's too early to draw any broad-sweeping assessments about that question.
15:28 Investigations take time, and it's important that they run their course, but it's important
15:32 that if accountability is merited, that accountability is what takes place, and we will be crystal
15:38 clear with the Government of Israel about their obligations to meet those standards.
15:42 I have a million follow-ups to that, but I'm sure my colleagues will do.
15:45 I have one final, broader question I want to put to you.
15:48 So since the start of this conflict, but specifically since U.S. response to ICC over the weekend,
15:54 there's been a lot of accusation that U.S. is actually eroding the very rules-based order
15:59 it has long promoted, particularly against China and Russia, because certain truths,
16:03 they say, are in contradiction to its policies when it comes to the war in Gaza.
16:08 I'm just wondering, are you not worried that your credibility in the world is on the line
16:12 here?
16:13 We have heard people make the same claim about the United States in the past.
16:15 I'm sure that they will make it in the future.
16:17 I can tell you we apply the same standards, the same approach, and require the same set
16:21 of behaviors out of all our partners anywhere in the world.
16:24 Go ahead.
16:25 Go.
16:26 On – you were saying that on the strike today – it seems like you were saying – no,
16:31 I'm sorry, the strike on Sunday.
16:32 You seem to be saying two things, one of them that the Israeli military hit 1.8 miles away
16:39 and another --
16:40 0.7 kilometers.
16:41 Kilometers.
16:42 That's what – that is what they have said.
16:43 But another point you said that the civilians were 1.7 kilometers away from where they were
16:48 supposed to be.
16:49 Which was it?
16:50 Maybe I misspoke.
16:51 I don't remember.
16:52 But the point I was trying to make is the location of their strike, if you look at what
16:56 the IDF has said publicly, was 1.7 kilometers away from the al-Mawassi site where they have
17:03 told civilians to go.
17:04 But was it the civilians' fault for being where they are?
17:07 No, that is not – that is not the point.
17:08 That is not – I don't believe that's – I don't believe that's the point I
17:10 made.
17:11 It's certainly not the point I intended.
17:12 The point was the fire took – broke out in the al-Mawassi camp where civilians have
17:18 fled.
17:19 The strike was 1.7 kilometers away from there.
17:22 How a strike 1.7 kilometers away ignited a fire that spread to that camp and led to that
17:27 horrific loss of life is something that needs to be investigated.
17:30 The IDF has said that they're investigating it, and we are pressing them for results.
17:33 Can I just ask you a specific question on that?
17:36 Over the weekend it was reported that there was a U.S. official who said that Israel told
17:41 the U.S. that it used the precision munition to hit the target, but that they believed
17:46 it was shrapnel from the explosion that ignited a fuel tank nearby and started the fire.
17:52 I am no military expert, but I don't understand how shrapnel could have flown 1.7 kilometers
17:59 in order to ignite that fire.
18:00 I am not familiar with that conversation.
18:04 All I can tell you is what they have said publicly, which is it might have been that
18:08 there was a Hamas weapons depot located near the strike, and that exploded and that led
18:13 to the fire.
18:14 I don't know if that's true.
18:15 The government of Israel knows that's true at this point.
18:17 They've only conducted a preliminary investigation.
18:19 But the point of all this is that question needs to be answered very much, and we expect
18:23 them to conduct a full, transparent, open investigation to answer it.
18:26 Okay.
18:27 And then just when it comes to the continuation of Israel using precision-guided munitions
18:34 in Rafa, at this point the U.S. still supports that?
18:37 We have made no change to our policy.
18:39 So just -- is it a yes or no?
18:40 We have made no change to our policy.
18:42 We have made clear that if there was a full-scale military operation, there would be some change.
18:47 But as of yet, it's not a change.
18:50 We do support, as we always have, their ability to go after legitimate Hamas terrorists, and
18:56 that, of course, includes using American-provided weapons.
19:00 But we expect them to do so in a way that minimizes civilian harm.
19:04 And then just the last question.
19:06 With regard to the reports of the Israeli tanks that are in central Rafa right now,
19:10 I know you said you don't -- you haven't verified those reports.
19:15 Has the U.S. asked Israel about those reports and an explanation for why those tanks might
19:19 be in central Rafa?
19:20 We are -- so we are in constant dialogue with them about their military operations and potential
19:26 military operations in Rafa.
19:27 I'm not going to get into any specific conversations, but we are constantly interrogating them about
19:33 what they're doing and what they're planning.
19:35 So it's safe to say you've interrogated them?
19:36 I'm just not going to go beyond that.
19:37 Go ahead, and I'll come to you next.
19:38 I just want to ask you one on the numbers of people who fled Rafa in the past few weeks.
19:43 It's 1 million is a reported number.
19:45 That's coming from UNRWA.
19:48 Is the U.S. satisfied with the plan or lack thereof of where these people are going?
19:54 Obviously, there's the argument that they're not safe wherever they go, especially since
19:58 Rafa was a place where they've gone to be safe.
20:01 What's your understanding on – Israel is also saying that they've been evacuating
20:04 people.
20:05 What level of evacuation are they assisting with?
20:07 Is that accurate?
20:08 What's your understanding?
20:09 I will let Israel speak to what they are doing.
20:12 I will say that the humanitarian situation continues to be incredibly challenging, not
20:17 just in Rafa but throughout Gaza.
20:21 And two things about it.
20:22 One, it's why we are working so hard to increase the flow of humanitarian assistance
20:27 and unlock policy barriers and unlock logistical barriers and unlock other barriers the way
20:33 the President was able to do on Friday in –
20:35 But do you guys have –
20:37 But that said, there is an additional problem, which is the fighting in Gaza right now is
20:46 not just confined to Rafa.
20:48 You've seen Israel have to come back in and undertake clearing operations in places
20:54 that they have already cleared in central and northern Gaza.
20:58 And it goes to the point that you have heard us make that while it's important that Israel
21:03 have a plan to fully – to the best of their ability, eliminate Hamas's ability to continue
21:14 to carry out terrorist threats, they also need to have a plan for the day after, and
21:18 that without a plan for the day after, there will be no day after.
21:21 So when you see Israel conducting military operations in places where it had previously
21:27 conducted military operations and thought that it was done, it does give us great concern
21:30 about the sustainability of this conflict.
21:33 I understand, but just more specifically, does the U.S. have an understanding about
21:36 where most of these people are going and whether or not where they're going is --
21:39 My understanding is that they have gone to a number of different places.
21:41 Some of them --
21:42 All of them?
21:43 Some of them have gone back to Khan Yunis.
21:44 Some of them have pushed into western Rafa.
21:45 Some of them have gone to Mawassi.
21:46 I don't think there's any one answer to that question.
21:49 And does the United States have an understanding of how much the IDF, the Israelis, are assisting
21:54 them or not assisting them?
21:55 I just don't know.
21:56 I just don't know.
21:57 Go ahead.
21:58 I just want to go -- to clarify something about the target that's 1.5 or 1.7 kilometers
22:03 away from the camp.
22:05 Is this your assessment or you are being --
22:08 Again, I thought that I was clear about it, but just to make perfectly clear, that is
22:11 what the IDF has said publicly.
22:13 And they announced that today, that it was the result of a preliminary investigation.
22:18 We are expecting them to complete a full investigation and make that public, and we will push them
22:22 to do that.
22:23 All right.
22:24 The U.S. does not have an independent assessment.
22:26 You don't have any assessment?
22:27 No.
22:28 Or if it did even happen on 1.7 or not?
22:31 No.
22:32 This is the -- as I -- yeah, no.
22:33 And I just want to go back to the ICJ ruling over the weekend or last Friday.
22:39 And a lot of the reading in the region now is that this two incidents now in Rafah is
22:46 an Israeli response to the ICJ, that we're not going to stop that.
22:51 What is your assessment?
22:53 So we have made clear that we respect the court's vital role in this area and that we
23:01 fully expect Israel to comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law, and
23:07 we will keep pressing them to do that.
23:09 I don't know that there's any reason -- any way to draw a connection between the two.
23:14 The importance to us is -- the important question to us is whether Israel is complying with
23:18 international humanitarian law or not, and that's something we're pressing them to do.
23:21 And so do you want Israel to then -- to accept this order from the ICJ?
23:27 We want them to fully comply with their international humanitarian law obligations.
23:32 We respect the court's role.
23:33 Israel has said that they are complying with the court's order.
23:37 My understanding of the way the process works is that assessments of compliance are made
23:41 by the court at the next step of the process, so we'll defer to that.
23:45 Said.
23:46 Go ahead.
23:47 Thank you.
23:48 First, I want to give a shout-out to my student visitor friend from Gaza, sitting in the back,
23:54 and came with me today to attend the briefing.
23:57 Welcome.
23:58 So, yeah.
24:00 I wanted to follow up on Leon and Humeirah's questions on the red line.
24:05 Is there actually a red line?
24:07 I mean, do you have, like, a yardstick by which you measure a red line that Israel may
24:12 cross or may not cross?
24:14 So the -- What is that?
24:15 The national security advisor to the President spoke to this last week from the White House
24:21 podium and made clear that there is no mathematical formula that you can apply, but it's something
24:26 that we will be watching very closely and discussing with our Israeli counterparts.
24:28 So in theory, Israel can strike anywhere, basically, and say there are Hamas operations.
24:35 So I'm not going to -- We can do that.
24:36 I'm not going to deal with your theories.
24:37 I'm going to deal with reality, and what we have said is how we will assess their compliance
24:41 with this question.
24:42 But that is a plausible hypothesis.
24:43 No, it's not.
24:44 It's not a plausible -- I'm not going to deal with your theories.
24:45 I'm not going to deal with -- I think you know I don't deal with hypotheses.
24:46 I try to deal with facts from this podium.
24:49 So I just wanted to ask you the statement that was issued by this administration over
24:54 Rafah.
24:55 When you say Israel has a right to pursue Hamas or to go after Hamas, isn't that implicitly
25:03 a green light for them to do whatever they want under that pretext?
25:07 No.
25:08 And, Saeed, I think that ignores everything that we have said a number of times.
25:12 It absolutely is not.
25:13 Okay.
25:14 So we would encourage them to take out terrorists who launched a brutal attack on the State
25:18 of Israel and carried out the cold-blooded murder of civilians, and at the same time
25:23 we expect them to do so in full compliance with international humanitarian law, minimizing
25:27 the harm to civilians.
25:28 And I know I've pointed this out to you before, Saeed.
25:32 Hamas could make this a lot easier by stopping hiding behind civilians.
25:36 Right.
25:37 Okay.
25:38 I mean, two weeks ago I remember asking you from here, and I in fact mentioned the name
25:46 of those who were killed.
25:47 Four of them were children and so on.
25:50 Whether they are going to be safer in Mawassi and in Tel Sultan, where they were asked to
25:56 leave.
25:57 At the time it seemed like part of a larger plan to move people into a safer zone.
26:03 But obviously it's not.
26:05 We saw killing 45 people in Raqqa.
26:09 We saw killing another 21, nobody knows how many, and so on, just yesterday.
26:14 So there seems to be no end.
26:16 You guys have any kind of perception on how this thing is going to end and when this horror
26:22 show stops?
26:23 So, Saeed, as often there was a lot of premises before you got to the question.
26:27 I will say with respect to the premises, we've been very clear.
26:31 Of course, Israel should not carry out strikes in the designated safer areas where they have
26:35 told people to move.
26:36 They say that's not what happened here.
26:38 They're going to conduct a full investigation.
26:40 We're going to wait the outcome of that investigation before passing judgment.
26:43 I think it's fully appropriate to do.
26:45 We want to have all the facts at our disposal.
26:48 When it comes to how this ends, I think we have also been pretty clear that in addition
26:52 to a military plan, Israel needs to have a political plan for the day after and for presenting
27:00 an alternative to Hamas.
27:02 We have not yet seen such a plan, and we've been working with our partners in the region
27:06 to come up with one that we will present to the State of Israel because we think that
27:08 is just as important as the military campaign they're conducting.
27:11 Lastly, on the aid, if you guys are unable to influence Israel on allowing aid in, what
27:18 makes you think that you don't want to be influential with their military operations
27:22 in Gaza?
27:23 So I – so, again, I'm going to reject the premise.
27:26 We have intervened and seen our interventions been successful throughout the course of this
27:30 campaign.
27:31 It was because of U.S. intervention that Rafa was opened in the first place.
27:35 It was because of our intervention that Kerem Shalom was opened and that Erez Crossing was
27:39 opened and that Zikum Crossing was opened and that Ashdod was opened and that trucks
27:46 are now coming from Jordan, coming through Israel and making it directly into northern
27:49 Gaza.
27:50 And it was because of the intervention of the United States just on Friday that trucks
27:55 – UN trucks were allowed to move again through Egypt into Israel, into Kerem Shalom, and
28:00 then ultimately on to the people who need them.
28:02 So I fully reject that premise and I don't think it's supported by the facts or the
28:05 history.
28:06 Go ahead.
28:07 QUESTION: Thank you, Matt.
28:08 I have two quick questions I have to leave for the whole hour.
28:10 One, you have called behind this podium many times for the protection of Palestinian civilians
28:15 in Gaza.
28:16 Can you tell us where are the safe zones?
28:18 Can you just name them, identify where are safe zones in Gaza that people can go to?
28:23 MR PRICE: I would leave it to the Government of Israel to speak to those.
28:26 Obviously, Mawassi is one of them.
28:27 I know they have designated others.
28:29 There are maps that are publicly available, but they're – I would leave it to them
28:32 to speak to that.
28:33 QUESTION: Okay.
28:34 And second, the co-founder of Human Rights Watch and a Holocaust survivor – he was
28:39 actually born in Nazi Germany – he said yesterday – and I just wanted to quote him
28:44 – he said that over a period of time, Israel has obstructed delivery of humanitarian assistance.
28:50 The victims were young children who were starved or badly malnourished that would be affected
28:55 their ability physically and mentally for the rest of their lives.
28:59 And on this basis alone, he believes that Israel is engaged in an act of genocide.
29:04 So is he wrong, whether it's legally, ethically, or politically?
29:10 How can you counter-argument this for the co-founder of Human Rights Watch and a Holocaust
29:16 survivor?
29:17 MR PRICE: Well, I would first of all say with respect to the humanitarian situation, it
29:20 is of course dire, and I have no doubt that the long-term impact, especially on the children
29:26 of Gaza, is going to be severe.
29:28 And they are going to be paying the price of suffering through this conflict for years
29:32 and years to come.
29:33 And that, of course, is not even to speak of the families who are left without loved
29:37 ones, including children, who have died over the course of this conflict.
29:41 It is not our judgment – continues to not be our judgment – that Israel is committing
29:45 genocide.
29:47 Nothing they have done meets the legal definition of that, and we have seen them take steps
29:50 to allow humanitarian assistance in.
29:53 We have seen them put in place measures to try and minimize civilian harm, as we spoke
30:00 to when we released the National Security Memo 20 report.
30:03 There are Israeli lawyers who are integrated into their targeting processes and have the
30:07 ability to give binding orders to block certain targets from being taken.
30:13 So all that goes into making that legal determination.
30:15 And we just fundamentally do not see it that way and don't think the facts support it
30:19 at all.
30:20 That is not to say that there has not been massive human suffering.
30:24 Of course there has.
30:26 And a great deal of that is on Hamas, who continues to hide behind civilians.
30:31 And of course a lot of it is on Israel that needs to take additional steps to minimize
30:35 civilian harm and minimize civilian suffering, and that's what we will continue to press
30:39 them to do.
30:40 QUESTION: Can I take a question on an investigative reporting by The Guardian and Magazine 972,
30:47 which is basically saying that Israel for the last 10 years, nine years, have been pressurizing
30:52 the ICC, spying on them?
30:54 And what will be the response from the U.S. if you think an ally of yours has been pressuring
31:02 an international legal entity that trying to try people for crimes against humanity
31:08 and war crimes?
31:09 MR PRICE So I read that report.
31:11 I think it's important to say we don't have - we have not verified that ourselves at this
31:16 point.
31:17 So I don't want to speak to hypotheticals about what the United States may or may not
31:20 do.
31:21 But of course we would oppose threats or intimidation against any public official.
31:24 QUESTION: Thank you.
31:25 MR PRICE Let's go ahead, Tom.
31:26 QUESTION: Do you have any examples of where an internal Israeli or IDF investigation has
31:29 led to meaningful accountability?
31:31 MR PRICE I know they have a number of ongoing investigations.
31:33 This is a conflict that is still relatively new.
31:36 And they have a number of investigations that have led to criminal prosecutions, which of
31:39 course is a further step.
31:41 As it relates to the broad scope of Israeli investigations over the years, I know there
31:46 have been places where people have been held accountable.
31:49 I know there are places in this conflict, for example, where they disciplined officers
31:52 who, for example, were filming themselves inside mosques.
31:56 And I'm happy to follow up with specifics on those instances.
31:58 QUESTION: I mean, I ask the question because you're hanging an awful lot on faith in this
32:02 process.
32:05 And for example, in the National Security Memorandum 20 report, you talk about being
32:09 convinced by Israel's, quote, "credible and reliable assurances" over this.
32:14 I mean, there are two cases in which American citizens who have been killed at the hands
32:18 of the IDF have had no meaningful accountability.
32:21 So I think people will perhaps be puzzled by your belief and assurances in that.
32:28 MR PRICE So what our – what we believe is that they have a process here.
32:33 We're not making any lasting judgments yet as to what that process will yield because
32:39 they're ongoing.
32:40 But it's --
32:41 QUESTION: These are ongoing.
32:42 But there have been many in the past that have been ongoing and have reached no conclusion.
32:45 And they also create a situation where you're able to get into a holding pattern and say,
32:51 okay, there's an investigation going on, so we'll hold judgment.
32:53 And in the end --
32:54 MR PRICE But the alternative is to short-circuit an investigation and pass judgment in the
32:57 middle of one, which also is not appropriate.
32:58 QUESTION: I'm not asking you to pass judgment on these current incidents.
33:02 I'm saying where is the evidence that there is meaningful accountability and the evidence
33:07 that these things are prevented from happening, which follows up what Humera was saying, on
33:11 the basis of internal Israeli processes.
33:14 Because a huge amount weighs on this now.
33:16 The International Criminal Court, one of your objections to it is that they have an independent
33:22 internal process.
33:23 The ICJ, same thing.
33:25 NSM-20, same thing.
33:27 All of these incidents, you are hanging on a belief in that process being effective.
33:32 And I'm asking you for the evidence that it is.
33:35 MR PRICE So let me just level set here in that Israel is a democracy that has prosecutors
33:41 and independent judges who can, in the case of prosecutors, conduct investigations and
33:46 make their own determinations about what is appropriate.
33:50 I know you want me to --
33:51 QUESTION I don't want to say anything --
33:52 MR PRICE I'm sorry, I don't want to put words in your mouth.
33:53 QUESTION I'm just getting your point.
33:54 MR PRICE Let me say, I hate it when people do this,
33:55 so let me take that back.
33:56 I don't want to put words in your mouth.
33:58 I know there is often a demand for us to try to jump to the end of an investigation.
34:04 I get the point you're making.
34:05 I get the point you're making.
34:06 QUESTION I'm actually not asking.
34:07 I'm asking for the evidence that these have been effective.
34:10 MR PRICE But you cannot reach an investigation --
34:13 you cannot reach a conclusion about the results of these investigations in the middle of a
34:17 conflict when the --
34:18 QUESTION That's not what I'm asking you to do.
34:19 MR PRICE But it is.
34:20 To have faith in the process, you have to have faith in -- you have to be able to look
34:24 at what the outcomes it has generated are.
34:26 And we're not in a place where you can do it.
34:27 QUESTION But the conflict is 100 years old.
34:28 In its current form, it's probably 40, 50 years old.
34:31 And when the IDF says that -- or the internal system says there is a process of internal
34:36 investigation, I'm asking you for some evidence that that is effective, that it stops it happening
34:41 again, that it creates accountability.
34:43 And for example, in the last two years, with two American citizens who have been killed,
34:49 there has been no meaningful accountability, when at the time what the Israelis said was
34:54 there is an investigation.
34:55 And you have relied on that as well.
34:57 MR PRICE So I just cited one case where there were officers who were disciplined for taking
35:00 actions inside a mosque, and there are a number of those similar cases that have been publicly
35:04 reported.
35:05 But I do think that it is impossible to pass a full, lasting judgment on the process while
35:10 you're in the middle of it.
35:11 I get the point that you are making, but we're just not in a position to declare that all
35:17 the investigations that Israel are conducting are sham investigations while they're ongoing.
35:20 I don't think it's fair to do that.
35:22 We would object if someone did that with respect to our military justice system while the investigations
35:27 were ongoing.
35:28 Now, if six months from now or nine months from now, wherever we are at the end of this
35:32 process or where a reasonable amount of time has passed, and we are able to look at this
35:36 and say there are investigations that have run their course, where we think action was
35:41 warranted and action has not been taken, we will be the first to say that publicly, and
35:46 we will be first to hold Israel account.
35:47 And you have seen us do that in other instances.
35:49 For example, when it comes to violence in the West Bank, where we don't think Israel
35:53 has taken appropriate actions to hold people accountable, we have taken our own actions
35:57 to hold people accountable.
35:58 And that's the standard that we will continue to apply.
36:00 I mean, what do you think of a military court system that in the cases of Palestinians that
36:05 appeared before it, there was a 99% conviction rate.
36:08 In the cases of Israelis that are held before separately, the civilian system, because they
36:13 don't in the same territory have to appear before the military system, rights groups
36:17 say that these are whitewashes, that there is – there are virtually no – there is
36:22 no accountability or investigation?
36:23 I think I'm going to wait, as I said, to see the outcome of the investigations that
36:26 are ongoing before I pass any judgment.
36:27 Alex, go ahead.
36:28 Thank you, Matt.
36:29 Two topics.
36:30 Ukraine, first of all, and then I'll go back to your office in Georgia as well.
36:32 I want to get your comments on the latest – the state of latest offensive in Ha'Kiv
36:37 and attack on the mall over the weekend.
36:39 And in light of that, we've heard very credible voices from the allies in terms of lifting
36:45 all restrictions on the weapons.
36:47 NATO Secretary General said it's time to do that.
36:50 Baltic states say that it's time to do that.
36:52 Poland says that.
36:53 Britain says that.
36:54 U.S. Congress says that.
36:55 Hensing Commission said that.
36:56 Are they all wrong?
36:57 I will say that we continue to see – first of all, see Russia launch intentional strikes
37:03 on civilian targets, and unlike other conflicts, where I think people will ask me questions
37:08 about, the Ukrainian military is not embedding itself inside malls and schools and other
37:12 civilian targets that the Russian military continues to hit.
37:18 And so we will continue to support Ukraine by flowing weapons to the front lines.
37:23 And you've already seen a number of drawdowns from the supplemental package.
37:27 A number – a great deal of that assistance has already reached the front lines.
37:30 When it comes to our policy – I spoke to this last week, and the Secretary has spoken
37:34 to this.
37:36 Look, our policy has been that we don't encourage or enable strikes outside Ukraine's
37:40 borders.
37:41 So if you look at the broad sweep of our policy, we have made clear that Ukraine has no bigger
37:47 support than the United States, and we don't just say that.
37:50 We back it up with our military assistance.
37:52 We back it up with our diplomacy in marshalling a coalition of more than 50 countries around
37:58 the world to support Ukraine, and we back it up with the measures we've taken to hold
38:01 Russia accountable.
38:02 Are you open for further consultations on this very topic?
38:05 The Secretary's going to meet with NATO Secretary General.
38:07 Look, we always discuss with our allies and partners whatever is on their mind.
38:11 We have those meetings, but I don't have anything further to offer.
38:13 Thank you.
38:14 Back to Georgia.
38:15 On your opening statement, is it fair for us to expect more than just verbal condemnation?
38:18 I know you just said it out of regard, but I think –
38:21 So Alex, hold on.
38:22 The only reason I'm going to laugh is for weeks – hold on.
38:25 A rare interruption of the question.
38:27 For weeks, you asked me that question.
38:29 We announced a policy to impose visa restrictions last Thursday, and then today you're asking
38:34 me if we are going to do more than verbal condemnation.
38:36 When I think if I check the record, that's exactly what we did last Thursday.
38:39 But sorry, go ahead.
38:40 I am coming from – we were told for many years in this room that sanctions are meant
38:45 to be behavior change, to just encourage behavior change, not for punishment, right?
38:51 I mean, I understand you said we're going to take action when we want, but I'm just
38:55 failing to understand.
38:56 If you're going to do it eventually and the sanctions are meant to be to change behavior,
38:59 why don't you just hurry up?
39:01 So we announced this policy on Thursday, so I know you want us to hurry up.
39:05 I will also say that when we make further designations, those designations aren't
39:09 public, so you won't necessarily know when we designate people with visa restrictions
39:12 because they are confidential under federal law.
39:15 But the visa restriction policy that we announced on Thursday is not the only thing that we
39:21 have made clear could change as a result of Georgia's actions.
39:25 As the Secretary announced on Thursday, we are conducting a comprehensive review of the
39:29 relationship between the United States and Georgia.
39:33 We provide Georgia $390 million of annual assistance every year for things like military
39:40 assistance, economic development projects, building institutions, civil society.
39:44 And we have to reassess all of that if the Georgian government is going to now regard
39:48 the United States and other Western partners not as partners anymore but as adversaries.
39:52 There's a new law that they passed today, you know, the overall, you know, the President's
39:57 veto, which is called offshore law.
39:58 Do you have any reaction to that?
40:00 I'm sorry, what was that?
40:01 Offshore law.
40:02 You know, the Georgians -- Separate, apart from the one I -- I'll have
40:05 to follow up and get a reaction to it.
40:06 Go ahead.
40:07 I got to ask about Iran.
40:08 Yeah.
40:09 There's a reporting today or yesterday that the U.S. is urging allies, particularly the
40:14 UK and France, to back off efforts to censure Iran at an upcoming IAEA meeting for fear
40:20 that it could trigger some sort of reaction from Iran.
40:24 Is there any accuracy to that reporting?
40:26 No.
40:27 That report is not true.
40:28 We have not lobbied any country to vote against or abstain from any resolution in that regard.
40:35 We are actively increasing pressure on Iran through a combination of sanctions, deterrence,
40:39 and international isolation to counter their destabilizing behavior and prevent them from
40:44 obtaining a nuclear weapon.
40:45 Jan, go ahead.
40:47 Thank you, Matt.
40:49 It was reported that North Korea launched a new military reconnaissance satellite shortly
40:56 after the South Korea-Japan-China summit in Seoul, South Korea, but it exploded in the
41:03 air.
41:04 What is your comment on that?
41:07 So we condemn the DPRK's May 27th launch, which incorporated technologies that are virtually
41:12 identical to those used in its unlawful ballistic missile program.
41:16 This launch was in violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions.
41:21 We have been in close consultation with our ROK and Japanese counterparts regarding the
41:25 launch, and we urge all countries to condemn the DPRK's unlawful WMD and ballistic missile
41:30 programs and press the DPRK to engage in serious dialogue, which today did his refrain from
41:35 doing.
41:36 But the common goal of denuclearization of Korean Peninsula was not included in the joint
41:44 declaration of the South Korea-Japan-China summit.
41:50 It is known that China has no intention of pursuing North Korea on the issue of denuclearization.
42:01 Can it be seen that China is tolerating North Korea's denuclearization?
42:07 So I will just speak for the United States and say that we have made clear, including
42:11 in our direct engagements with the People's Republic of China, that we would welcome them
42:17 playing any kind of productive role in countering the DPRK's unlawful weapons of mass destruction
42:24 programs.
42:25 We will continue to make that clear, and I think I'll leave it at that.
42:28 Taiwan.
42:29 Yeah.
42:30 As you're aware, China conducted military drills around the Taiwan Strait and Taiwan
42:35 itself.
42:36 The Taiwanese president has suggested to China to, and I quote, "share the heavy responsibility
42:44 of regional stability with Taiwan."
42:47 Do you think this is a good move on the part of Taiwan, and do you have any general comments
42:51 on this suggestion?
42:52 I'm not going to speak to that in specific.
42:55 I will say, with respect to the PRC's activities, we put out a statement from the Secretary
43:00 on Saturday where we expressed our deep concern and said that we think the PRC should do everything
43:06 to maintain stability and refrain from taking actions that increase destability across the
43:13 Taiwan Strait.
43:14 All right.
43:16 To you, somewhat on that, the PRC has argued that its position is based on United Nations
43:28 General Assembly Resolution 2758.
43:33 Deputy Assistant Secretary Mark Lambert's clarification, he made some clarifications
43:38 in a recent event where he exposed the PRC's distortion of UN General Assembly resolution
43:46 2758.
43:49 Is there – what's the – does the resolution endorse China's sovereignty claim over Taiwan,
43:59 and what's the distortion?
44:00 Can you tell us?
44:01 No, it does not.
44:02 But – and for any further comments, let me take it back.
44:05 I haven't seen Mark's comments, so let me take it back and talk to him.
44:08 Okay.
44:09 One more, please.
44:10 Again, China – Taiwan has been banned from attending the World Health Organization meeting
44:16 this year, whereas in – as of since 2009 to 2016, it did attend those – the assembly.
44:30 On Friday, countries including the U.S. and several others issued a joint statement supporting
44:35 Taiwan's participation, and Secretary Blinken has issued a statement saying that the U.S.
44:42 support is in line with Washington's "one China" policy.
44:48 Do you have any further comments on that?
44:51 Can you spell out the difference between Washington's "one China" policy and Beijing's "one
44:57 China" principle?
44:58 So I don't really have any further comment to those two statements that we put out.
45:01 Our "one China" policy has not changed, and we have made clear repeatedly that we
45:07 think Taiwan should be able to participate in the WHO session, that we think that when
45:11 they were a participant they brought meaningful expertise that enriched the discussions there
45:16 and the debates there, and we want them to be allowed to participate in future sessions.
45:19 All right.
45:20 Thank you.
45:21 Go ahead.
45:22 Thank you, Matt.
45:23 Speaking of the reactions to the conflict in Gaza, today Iraqi Clerk Muqtada al-Sadr
45:27 said in a statement that what Israel is doing in Gaza they are doing with the support of
45:32 the U.S. and U.S. President.
45:34 And he asked the Iraqi Government to shut down the U.S. Embassy and expel the U.S. ambassador
45:39 in Iraq.
45:40 Do you have any concern or reaction to that statement?
45:43 So I'm aware of his comment.
45:45 I will just say that we value our broad relationship, our broad strategic relationship with Iraq
45:51 and remain committed to working with the Government of Iraq to expand opportunities for all Iraqis
45:55 and support Iraq's security, stability, and sovereignty.
45:58 And what's your reaction to the recent attacks to the U.S. branch in Baghdad?
46:02 They attacked the KFC and also there were different attacks, which the Iraqi police
46:06 says that this is anti-Israel motive behind these attacks.
46:10 So we are tracking those reports and obviously condemn the act of violence, and we welcome
46:14 the statement by Iraqi authorities that they are investigating the attack and want to see
46:20 them fully do so.
46:21 Thank you.
46:22 Go ahead.
46:23 Thanks, Matthew.
46:24 What is Secretary Blinken's goals at the NATO Foreign Ministers' Meeting?
46:29 So we did a call on that last week where we outlined what we intended to cover at the
46:33 NATO Foreign Minister's Meeting.
46:36 The Assistant Secretary for Europe, James O'Brien, discussed that, and I will refer
46:39 you to the transcript for a kind of full elucidation of the trip's goals.
46:44 But I'll say in general, this is one of the – it is the last meeting of foreign ministers
46:49 before the Washington summit in July.
46:52 So it will be making the final preparations for the summit, including talking about our
46:57 broad support for Ukraine.
47:00 And what consequences could the U.S. impose on Israel for the bombing in Rafa?
47:05 I have spoken to that, I believe, at length already.
47:08 Okay.
47:09 And how does the U.S. feel about Israel taking responsibility for the bombing in Rafa?
47:13 Is it sufficient?
47:15 Is it sufficient?
47:16 Again, I think I spoke to that at length and to a number of questions already.
47:20 Go ahead.
47:21 Thank you.
47:22 Q Thanks, John.
47:23 A follow-up joint investigation by German-based DW and – and Sweden-based Netro News revealed
47:31 that former and current members of the Bangladeshi death squad Rapid Action Battalion routinely
47:38 get deployed as UN peacekeepers.
47:40 Since the U.S. sanctioned RAV for gross violation of human rights, how concerned are you that
47:47 its officers are being deployed in UN missions that the U.S. funds significantly, around
47:54 27 percent fund contributing by the U.S. from the taxpayers' money?
47:58 So we are aware of these reports.
48:00 Peacekeeping operations play an essential role in promoting international peace and
48:03 security, and it is essential that peacekeeping personnel protect human rights.
48:08 In accordance with the UN due diligence policy, the UN relies on troop and police-contributing
48:12 countries to self-certify that they are not sending troops or police who are implicated
48:16 in committing human rights violations or violations of international humanitarian –
48:19 Q Following recent revelation of the immediate past police chief's massive corruption in
48:24 Bangladesh, who is subject to two U.S. sanctions, could you tell us whether any U.S. agency
48:31 has found any of his assets test in the U.S. or any other country, and whether the U.S.
48:38 has frozen such assets?
48:40 Similarly, do you have any findings about corrupt former Army chief General Aziz, as
48:44 you imposed visa restriction recently?
48:47 Will you take any action against the regime's top leadership, essentially from where these
48:52 individuals are getting a free pass to do anything or everything?
48:55 So with respect to the first question, I don't have anything to announce.
48:58 With respect to the second, I'm aware of the allegations in the media reports that
49:03 you referenced.
49:04 We've been quite clear that we believe corruption saps economic growth, hinders development,
49:08 destabilizes government, and undermines democracy.
49:11 We have made anti-corruption a core national security interest since the outset of this
49:16 administration, and our detailed implementation plan for this strategy has been articulated
49:22 at a number of senior levels.
49:24 But I don't have anything new to announce, and as you know, we never preview sanctions
49:27 or other actions that we might take.
49:28 Go ahead, and then we'll come to Alan, and then we'll wrap.
49:29 Go ahead.
49:30 Q Just a quick one on Gaza.
49:31 Do you have reports on Gaza, and specifically humanitarian aid, and specifically on the
49:40 pier?
49:41 There are reports saying that the pier – the U.S. has suspended aid because the pier broke
49:46 down or what have you.
49:47 I don't have the details on that.
49:48 MR PRICE Yeah, so I know that there was – there were
49:50 some issues with – due to the weather over the weekend.
49:53 I know the Pentagon has a briefing this afternoon, and I'll leave it to them to speak to that.
49:57 Ellen, go ahead, and then we'll wrap up.
49:58 Q One of my questions was his, but I wanted to ask, what's the situation with the humanitarian
50:03 groups able to – being able – not being able to access aid from Kerem Shalom?
50:08 They say it's too dangerous for them to – could you discuss the situation in general?
50:12 MR PRICE It is something that we continue to work through
50:14 with the United Nations and with the Government of Israel and with the IDF.
50:19 It's related to these questions of de-confliction coordination that we have been working through,
50:23 that the Secretary discussed on our last trip.
50:26 We have – there are a number of things at play here.
50:29 One, we have seen kind of improvements in de-confliction coordination, but sometimes
50:32 that's been tough to communicate down to the unit level, which goes to the question
50:38 of these groups being able to travel to a checkpoint and then actually make it through
50:42 a checkpoint and not sit at the checkpoint for hours when you expose yourself to potential
50:45 harm.
50:47 But then the other thing I'll say is that for a number of days, we weren't actually
50:52 even getting humanitarian assistance to Kerem Shalom because of this issue with it being
50:57 stopped in Egypt.
50:58 We've now seen it flow, and so we tend to work these things kind of – we're always
51:03 working on all of it, but as you get humanitarian assistance into Kerem Shalom, then have a
51:09 much greater need to kind of break down those barriers to delivery, which we're actually
51:14 working on.
51:15 Go ahead.
51:16 Yeah.
51:17 QUESTION: Can I finish on Turks and Caicos?
51:18 MR.
51:19 RATHKE: Sure.
51:20 QUESTION: I know this came up a couple of days ago, but some Americans – I believe
51:22 five – have been arrested there for what they say is mistakenly bringing ammo to the
51:26 island.
51:27 They face a minimum of 12 years sentence for that.
51:29 I think one was freed today with the suspended sentence.
51:34 Some members of Congress are pushing the State Department to change the travel advisory.
51:39 Is that anything that's under discussion?
51:40 MR.
51:41 RATHKE: So I'm never going to preview changes to a travel advisory or even talk about whether
51:45 something is under discussion or not, but I will note that our travel advisory to Turks
51:49 and Caicos does make note that people should be aware of local laws, which would, of course,
51:55 prevent people from landing themselves in this situation in the first place.
51:59 So we do encourage all Americans to check our travel advisory to Turks and Caicos or
52:03 any other country that they might be visiting, because it does contain important information
52:09 that is important to their safety and their well-being.
52:11 And with that, we're out for today.
52:12 Thanks.
52:13 QUESTION: Thank you.
52:14 MR.
52:15 RATHKE: Thank you.
52:15 [BLANK_AUDIO]