The news that U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was killed in Kiev on January 3 is unverified. According to the Department of Defense, Austin has been hospitalized from January 1 to January 15, recuperating from complications arising after a surgical procedure.
———————-
In conspiracy circles, there is a circulating claim that ‘U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is suspected to have been killed in Kiev on January 3, as Russian rockets were allegedly launched at a command bunker where Austin and Lieutenant General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the General Commander of the Ukrainian army, were meeting secretly.’
| Arianit Silamniku
January 10 at 9:27 AM JANUARY BEGAN LIKE THIS… The U.S. Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, is suspected to have been killed in Kiev on January 3 when Russian rockets were allegedly launched at a command bunker where Austin and Lieutenant General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the General Commander of the Ukrainian army, reportedly met secretly to discuss planning an asymmetric offensive to ‘bring Vladimir Putin to his knees.’ Hence, the reports that ‘the Pentagon did not notify the Biden Administration regarding Austin’s illness and his absence from duty as the Commander of U.S. Forces’ have surprised the entire American public and political sphere, leaving them uninformed about whether he survived the Russian attack in Ukraine or not!
|
As usual, this news is not accompanied by any source or evidence.
Through a keyword search, Faktoje discovered that this news appears to have originated on the Real Raw News online platform, on January 7, 2024.
A Pentagon spokesperson told Reuters that this report is incorrect.
In reality, Austin underwent a surgical intervention for a prostate tumor in Maryland, USA, on December 22, 2023. He was readmitted to the hospital on January 1, 2024, due to complications arising from the surgery.
Austin remained in the hospital from January 1 to January 15. The U.S. Department of Defense stated that Austin was working from home while recovering.
The Real Raw News article also claims that Austin has been in Ukraine from November 2023 until his alleged ‘assassination’ on January 3.
According to the Department of Defense press release, Austin was indeed in Ukraine in November, when he met with Ukrainian officials, including President Zelensky.
However, on November 22, 2023, he was back in the US. During a virtual Pentagon meeting, he is heard saying: ‘I just got back from Kiev.’
In December 2023, Austin showed up and was photographed at a number of events, including a speech he gave at the National Defense Forum in California, and an appearance at an American football match in Massachusetts.
In December, Austin traveled to the Middle East to visit Israel, Bahrain and Qatar, according to a post on his Twitter account.
Faktoje has previously debunked fake news stories coming from Real Raw News, which states in its self-description that it ‘contains humor, parody, and satire.’
