Europe 1 with AFP 18:12 p.m., January 15, 2024
The US Secretary of Defense was discharged from hospital on Monday after spending two weeks there, the Pentagon announced, although he had created controversy for having kept quiet for several days about this hospitalization, including at the White House."As I continue to recover and perform my duties from home, I look forward to fully recovering and returning to the Pentagon as soon as possible," Lloyd Austin, who had received support from President Joe Biden despite his silence, said in a statement.
The 70-year-old ex-general was diagnosed with prostate cancer in early December. He underwent surgery on 22 December, returned home the next day, and was hospitalised again on 1 January due to complications, including nausea and severe pain. The White House was only informed on January 4 of his hospitalization, which was made public on January 5.
Secret hospitalizations
The situation has caused an uproar in the press and among his Republican opponents, in the middle of an election year and at a time when the world's leading military power is involved in several major conflicts, from Ukraine to the Middle East.
Supporting Kiev against Russia and Israel against Palestinian Hamas, Washington, whose forces are regularly the target of attacks in Iraq and Syria, is mobilizing its international partners against Yemen's Houthi rebels who threaten shipping in the Red Sea.
The White House had conceded that the secret hospitalizations were not "ideal" and some Democratic lawmakers expressed unease about the situation. While the president has maintained his "confidence" in his minister, according to his spokeswoman, the White House has ordered a review of the rules applicable in the event of incapacity of senior officials.