US did not have advance warning of Israeli strike in Beirut, Pentagon says
World
US did not have advance warning of Israeli strike in Beirut, Pentagon says
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States had no advance warning of an Israeli strike in Beirut and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Israeli counterpart as the operation was ongoing, a Pentagon spokesperson said on Friday.
"The United States was not involved in this operation and we had no advanced warning," spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters.
Singh declined to say what Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told Austin about the operation and whether it targeted Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. The Pentagon also declined to speculate on whether the Hezbollah leader was still alive.
Austin and Gallant spoke as the Pentagon chief flew over the Atlantic after a visit to London.
Asked what Austin may have communicated to Gallant given the Israeli strike's potential impact on U.S. efforts to secure a ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, Singh declined to offer specifics, but she said the defense secretary is always frank in his conversations with his Israeli counterpart.
