00:00There's no indication that we have that that has been corroborated.
00:03How many schools have we bombed?
00:05There is one active civilian casualty investigation from the 13,629 munitions.
00:11So how do you explain the publicly available information that 22 schools have been hit and multiple hospitals?
00:17There's no way that we can corroborate that. No indication of that whatsoever, Senator.
00:21There's no way you can corroborate or no indication of it? Which one?
00:24No indication.
00:25Have you investigated those claims?
00:27We have not.
00:28Why have you not investigated those allegations when they're publicly being made on the cover of The New York Times?
00:33We had Secretary Hegseth here a week or so ago, and we did not get satisfactory answers about Iran.
00:42So what is your mission in Iran right now?
00:47Senator, with Epic Fury now formally ended per the president's notification,
00:53we shifted our mission to a blockade mission in the following day,
00:57and that we're implementing that mission in accordance with the international armed conflict.
01:01That's our main mission today, as well as to be ready for a broad range of contingencies.
01:05And do you feel that President Trump's declaration that we have obliterated all of Iran's capabilities
01:14and their nuclear program, is that accurate?
01:19Senator, I speak from a military perspective.
01:21We have significantly degraded their drone, missile, and naval capabilities.
01:26We've fractured their command and control.
01:28We've eliminated the large preponderance of their space program.
01:32They, by every measure, are degraded significantly across all measures of national power.
01:38So what's your exit strategy to end the conflict with Iran?
01:42Senator, that's a policy decision.
01:44And don't you have to offer the president various exit strategies so he knows how to get from A to
01:49B?
01:50Senator, consistent with my statutory obligations, I've provided a broad range of options,
01:55along with risks and mitigations through the secretary.
01:59So given your current mission, how many more days, weeks, months, years are we going to be at war with
02:04Iran?
02:06Well, as we sit here today, we are in a ceasefire.
02:09And the way ahead will be determined by our policymakers.
02:13Well, currently, we are still spending a billion dollars a day on this war with Iran.
02:17And I can tell you from my New York constituents, they're furious about it.
02:21Because a billion dollars a day could be lowering their housing costs, lowering their food costs,
02:26lowering their health care costs, lowering the cost of everyday expenses that continue to go up
02:30because of the war in Iran.
02:32With the price of gas as high as it is, the price of diesel as high as it is,
02:36it means everything that they have to buy for their families is more expensive.
02:40So we expect from our military leaders a plan about why and how long we are going to be spending
02:47a billion dollars a day.
02:49And I have not seen that plan or the why from President Trump or Secretary Hegseth.
02:54So I'm hoping, as the military person in charge of operations, that you have a plan to end this war
03:01and to stop spending a billion dollars a day.
03:05Senator, we have a broad range of plans and contingencies consistent with my obligation
03:11to provide that advice.
03:13Both the Secretary and the President, we've done so.
03:15Decisions will be made by our civilian leadership.
03:18And my job will be to execute them.
03:19The second concern I have, Admiral Cooper, is how we've prosecuted this war to date.
03:25We have data and information publicly available in publications like the New York Times
03:30that 22 schools have been hit, hospitals, dozens of hospitals have been hit.
03:36We have regulations.
03:38We have the law of war.
03:40We have human rights obligations.
03:42We have our own targeting requirements to avoid civilian harm and death.
03:48Have you been implementing all the laws that are required under current law to minimize civilian death?
03:56Senator, we have executed every operation consistent with the law of armed conflict.
04:01The subject of civilian casualties is a particular passion of mine.
04:04We pay attention to it.
04:05We follow all the procedures and have gone above and beyond to, in my case,
04:10personally warn the Iranian people of several instances during conflict where they were being potentially used as human targets.
04:16How did we then bomb 22 schools?
04:19There's no indication that we have that that has been corroborated.
04:23How many schools have we bombed?
04:24There is one active civilian casualty investigation from the 13,629 munitions.
04:30So how do you explain the publicly available information that 22 schools have been hit and multiple hospitals?
04:37There's no way that we can corroborate that.
04:39No indication of that whatsoever, Senator.
04:40There's no way you can corroborate or no indication of it?
04:43Which one?
04:44No indication.
04:46Well, the indication is what's publicly available.
04:48There is indication.
04:49Have you investigated those claims?
04:51We have not.
04:52Why have you not?
04:54If this is a passion of yours, if you believe that the civilian casualties are not consistent with the law
05:00of war
05:00and not consistent with human rights obligations, that our military regularly follows with great pride and great diligence,
05:07why have you not investigated those allegations when they're publicly being made on the cover of the New York Times?
05:13I would be happy to take a look at each instance.
05:16I would like a report.
05:18I would like a report from you, from your team, about whether there have been
05:25attacks that have resulted in the destruction of schools and hospitals, and if so, why?
05:31And how, then, last, have you managed the 90% cut to the personnel who are supposed to avoid civilian
05:38targets?
05:40Happy to provide any report, and I would invite you and every staff member here to come to Tampa to
05:44look at the process,
05:45to see exactly how it works.
05:48Thank you, Radma.
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