WASHINGTON — Amid tensions in the Middle East, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has been hospitalized, including spending four days in the intensive care unit, according to two senior administration officials.
A US official confirms that the Pentagon did not inform senior White House National Security Council officials of Austin's hospitalization until Thursday — three days after he arrived at Walter Reed Medical Center. Politico was the first to report the delay.
Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement Friday evening that Austin was hospitalized Monday night due to “complications following a recent elective medical procedure.”
Austin issued a statement on Saturday taking responsibility for not disclosing his condition sooner.
“I am very glad that I am on the mend and look forward to returning to the Pentagon soon. I also understand the media's concerns about transparency and recognize that I could have done a better job of ensuring the public was adequately informed. I am committed to doing better.” “But it's important to say: This was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decisions about disclosure,” Austin said.
President Joe Biden spoke with Austin on Saturday evening, according to a senior administration official, who noted that it was the first phone call between the president and Austin since he was hospitalized.
“It was a warm conversation,” the senior administration official said. He added, “The president wished him well in his recovery and said he looked forward to seeing the minister return to the Pentagon soon.”
A senior Defense Department official said Friday that Austin has been unable to perform his duties since New Year's Day. The source said it was not clear when he would be released. No details were available about what happened to him.
Ryder told NBC News that Austin “resumed his full duties” on Friday evening. He remained in the hospital on Saturday.
A senior Defense Department official said Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks, who was on leave, assumed her duties.
Hicks was on a previously scheduled vacation when Austin was hospitalized this week, according to a defense official. The official said she was on vacation in Puerto Rico.
The official said she “maintained full contact with Department of Defense personnel at all times.” “She monitored the daily operations of the Department of Defense and conducted some routine work.”
The source said that the third man in line for civilian leadership at the Pentagon, the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, is temporarily holding the acting position because the US Senate has not confirmed the appointment of Derek Chollet. Sasha Baker has been playing this role since last summer.
“The Deputy Secretary of Defense was prepared at all times to act and exercise the powers of the Secretary, if necessary,” Ryder said in the statement.
Pentagon officials declined to describe Austin's condition or specify what prevented him from carrying out his duties this week.
The Pentagon also did not release details about the procedure or when it would take place, and would not say whether Austin was taken to the hospital in an ambulance.
Asked why the Pentagon kept Austin's hospitalization a secret, Rader told NBC News: “This was an evolving situation and we had to take into account a number of factors.”
That includes Austin's personal privacy, he said.
While Austin was hospitalized, the United States carried out a rare and controversial strike against a senior member of an Iranian-backed militia in Baghdad. Bases housing Americans have been attacked at least six times, and the Biden administration has been considering options to strike Houthi militants in response. For their continuous attacks on ships in the Red Sea.
Tensions in the region center around the war between Israel and Hamas. In October, the US Navy sent two aircraft carrier strike groups to the eastern Mediterranean in response.
Iran-backed Houthi militants based in Yemen, dissatisfied with Israeli attacks on Palestinian communities, attack container ships in the Red Sea.
On December 30, a US Navy destroyer shot down two Houthi missiles after it responded to an attack on a container ship that resulted in no casualties or damage, military officials said at the time. The next day, Houthi rebels fired on naval helicopters in response to a container ship's distress call. Officials said the navy returned fire, sinking three small boats and killing their crew members.
The United States is also concerned about further regional entanglement as Iranian-backed Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon exchange munitions with Israel along its northern border.
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