US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has been hospitalized due to health complications, as confirmed by the US Department of Defense (Pentagon).
This comes at a time when the United States is facing growing tensions in the Middle East.
Austin was admitted to Walter Reed Military Hospital near Washington on the evening of January 1 due to complications arising from a non-emergency medical procedure, according to Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby in a statement.
The statement did not specify the nature of the complications or the expected duration of his hospital stay.
Kirby added that he is recovering well, and is expected to fully resume his duties last Friday. He also noted that Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks had been ready to step in and use the Secretary’s authorities if necessary.
Another Pentagon spokesperson later told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that Deputy Secretary Hicks is automatically empowered to assume the duties of the Secretary if he is unable, and that she had already taken “routine decisions on (Austin’s) behalf this week.”
Austin’s hospitalization comes amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, particularly related to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Houthi rebels, backed by Iran, have increased their attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea, while other groups in Iraq and Syria have targeted U.S. forces stationed in both countries using missiles and drones.
On Thursday, a military leader and a member of one of the Iran-backed factions in Iraq were killed in a US airstrike that targeted a Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) facility in Baghdad.
