White House Spokesman Kirby Defends Israel by Criticizing US Military

John Kirby's Controversial Remarks

A peculiar and somewhat unsettling incident unfolded in the White House press briefing room last week. The national security spokesperson, John Kirby, was questioned about the alleged war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza. As Israel's Rafah operation continues, the press pool's criticisms of US policy have become more severe. In a surprising move, Kirby essentially criticized the US military to defend Israel's actions in Gaza. A journalist asked him about the potential fallout if an American strike on a legitimate terrorist target resulted in 45 civilian deaths and approximately 200 injuries. The exchange that followed was quite revealing:

Kirby's Response to the Question

Kirby responded, "I can't answer a hypothetical like that." He then added, "But we have conducted airstrikes in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, where tragically we caused civilian casualties." "We did the same thing. We owned up to it. We investigated it. And we tried to make changes... We tried to learn from it to make changes so that those set of mistakes wouldn't happen again," Kirby continued. His response was, at best, an uncomfortable defense of Israel. Many online commentators pointed out that Kirby's attempt to defend a foreign nation and improve its image amidst growing international criticism inadvertently ended up criticizing his own country's military forces.

Kirby's Reference to Past US Military Actions

Kirby might have been alluding to a drone strike in Kabul in August 2021 that killed an aid worker and nine of his family members. The Pentagon claimed it was targeting ISIS-K during the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan, but seven of the deceased were children. During the US's over two-decade-long occupation of Afghanistan, there were several instances where entire wedding parties were wiped out by American airstrikes, resulting in numerous civilian casualties.

Kirby's Expectations

"We atoned for it, we learned from it, and we put in place procedures to try and prevent that from happening again," Kirby stated in last week's press briefing. "And that's what our expectations would be in this case."

Final Thoughts

This incident raises important questions about the lengths to which officials will go to defend foreign allies, even if it means criticizing their own military forces. It's a thought-provoking situation that warrants further discussion. What are your thoughts on this matter? Do you think Kirby's comments were appropriate, or did he cross a line? Please share this article with your friends and let us know your thoughts. Don't forget to sign up for the Daily Briefing, which is delivered every day at 6pm.