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Spokesman for the US Department of State John Kirby refused to answer a question of a RT correspondent about evidences of alleged Russian airstrikes in Syria, noting that he is not going to put RT “on the same level with the rest of independent media outlets.”
Spokesman for the US Department of State John Kirby lost self-control, after a correspondent of the RT TV-channel asked him to specify, which organizations provide Washington with information that the Russian Aerospace Forces have allegedly bombed five hospitals in the Syrian city of Aleppo. Kirby advised the journalist to appeal to the Russian Defense Ministry for comments and added that he is not going to put RT “on the same level with the rest of independent media outlets.”
During Wednesday’s State Department briefing, Kirby said that Washington has acquainted itself with “reports from credible aid organizations,” but did not furnish any other arguments.
When the RT correspondent asked the spokesman to specify which organizations he meant and what information they provided, Kirby answered: “You work for Russia Today [RT], and so why shouldn’t you ask your government the same kind of questions that you are asking me? Ask them about their military activities.”
“Please be careful about saying ‘your Defense Ministry’ and things like that – she’s a journalist, she’s just like the rest of us are,” Lee pointed out.
“From a state-owned outlet!” Kirby interrupted the journalist. “I am not going to put Russia Today [RT] on the same level with the rest of you, who are representing independent media outlets.”
After the briefing, another representative of the department apologized to the reporter for the Kirby’s behavior and emailed the journalist a “detailed statement with the locations of the allegedly bombed hospitals originally sent by “Health Cluster Turkey Hub / Health Cluster partners & NPM.”
The day before, spokeswoman for the US Department of State Elizabeth Trudeau reported that there is ‘some data’ that prove that Russian fighter jets struck “five hospitals and at least one mobile clinic in Syria.”
Spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry, Major General Igor Konashenkov, responded by saying that all the public rhetoric of the US Department of State about the situation in Syria is based on “shameless lies,” and the “repetition of rumors” about attacks on Syrian hospitals and clinics is another evidence of this fact.
As the Russian Defense Ministry stressed on Wednesday, aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces, as well as fighter jets of the Syrian Air Force have not been carrying out airstrikes in the area of Aleppo during the past 29 days.
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