Pool Reports of August 27, 2021

WH in-town pool report #1/ Afghanistan evacuation figures

?Hi everyone,

The White House sent out the following:

'From a White House official:

From August 26 at 3:00 AM EDT to August 27 at 3:00 AM EDT, a total of approximately 12,500 people were evacuated from Kabul. This is the result of 35 US military flights (29 C-17s and 6 C-130s) which carried approximately 8,500 evacuees, and 54 coalition flights which carried approximately 4,000 people.

Since August 14, the U.S. has evacuated and facilitated the evacuation of approximately 105,000 people. Since the end of July, we have re-located approximately 110,600 people.'

WH in-town pool report #2/ Pentagon press briefing

From the White House:

'Pentagon Press Secretary John F. Kirby and Army Maj. Gen. William D. "Hank" Taylor, Joint Staff deputy director for regional operations, will brief the media at the Pentagon at 10:30 AM EDT.

You can watch live here: https://www.defense.gov/Watch/Live-Events/#/?currentVideo=26982'

WH in-town pool report #3/ Israel

From the White House:

'The President spoke with Prime Minister Bennett last night by phone to thank him for his willingness to postpone their meeting in light of the terror attacks in Kabul. The President also thanked the Prime Minister for his condolences on behalf of the people of Israel.'

WH in-town pool report #4/ Bilateral meeting starts

From the White House:

'The President's one-on-one bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Bennett began at 11:06 AM.'

WH in-town pool report #5/ Pool gathers

?Pool has gathered beside lower press ahead of a stop at POTUS's bilateral meeting with Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett.

WH in-town pool report #6/ Expanded bilateral meeting

??Pool entered the Oval Office at 11.59am.

From the White House:

'Participating in the President's expanded bilateral meeting with His Excellency Naftali Bennett, Prime Minister of the State of Israel, in the Oval Office:

United States
T.H. Antony Blinken, Secretary of State
T.H. Jake Sullivan, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
T.H. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations
T.H. Brett McGurk, Deputy Assistant to the President and Coordinator for the Middle East and North Africa, National Security Council
Mr. Michael Ratney, Chargé d'Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Israel
T.H. Barbara Leaf, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for the Middle East and North Africa, National Security Council

Israel
Dr. Eyal Hulata, National Security Advisor and Head of the National Security Council
H.E. Gilad Erdan, Ambassador of the State of Israel to the United States and the United Nations
Ms. Shimrit Meir, Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister
Major General Avil Gil, Military Secretary to the Prime Minister
Mr. Tal Gan-Zvi, Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister
Mr. Shalom Shlomo, Cabinet Secretary'

WH in-town pool report #7/ Biden remarks

POTUS, sitting with Israeli prime minister Bennett before the Oval Office fireplace, began with remarks about Afghanistan, paying tribute to US troops who died yesterday.

He described it as a "dangerous" but "worthy" mission, noting that more than 12,000 people have been evacuated in the last 24 hours.

He said: "I'm not going to take any questions, because of the prime minister being here, on Afghanistan now."

He went on to talk about Israel, commenting: "It's an unshakable partnership between our two nations."

Israeli PM Bennett is now speaking, saying the main issue today will be Iran and nuclear weapons. More to follow.

WH in-town pool report #8/ No questions

As he promised, POTUS did not take questions and pool was led out of the Oval Office at 12.13pm. More detailed quotations to follow.

WH in-town pool report #9/ More detailed POTUS comments about Afghanistan

POTUS, wearing a black face mask, dark suit, white shirt and striped tie, looking down at notes, said; "Welcome folks. It's a delight to have the prime minister here. I know there's gonna be – We're going to talk about our relationship, which is strong as can be, but I know you're going to want to know what's happened this morning in terms of my meetings with my national security team.

"Let me begin by once again acknowledging the bravery and the sacrifice that our military makes every single day. The loss of those Americans, Marines and sailor and army personnel, is tragic.

"As I said yesterday. – and the prime minister and I talked about it slightly, he's a military man, gone to war, lost a friend – you know, losing a son or daughter, husband, wife, is like being sucked into a big black hole in the middle of your chest. You don't think there's any way out, wonder what's happening. So my heart, our hearts go out to all those who we've lost.

"But look, the mission there being performed is dangerous and has now come with significant loss of American personnel, but it's a worthy mission because they continue to evacuate folks out of that region, out of the airport. They've evacuated more than 12,000 additional people out of the airport in the last 24 hours.

"I met with my commanders this morning, first thing in the morning, got a detailed briefing about yesterday's attacks and the measures they're taking to protect their forces and complete the mission. And we will complete the mission. Now, I'm not going to take any questions, because of the prime minister being here, on Afghanistan now, but I'll be available another time."

More to follow.

WH in-town pool report #10/ Afghanistan update

From a White House official:

The President met this morning in the Situation Room with his national security team, including our commanders and diplomats in the field. The Vice President joined by secure video teleconference. They advised the President and Vice President that another terror attack in Kabul is likely, but that they are taking maximum force protection measures at the Kabul Airport.

They reported that even in the face of those threats, our courageous service women and men are continuing to operate a historic evacuation operation. The U.S. military is airlifting out thousands of people every few hours. They continue to prioritize evacuating the remaining American citizens who have indicated that they wish to leave, and are engaged in a variety of means to get them to the airport safely. The President directed the Secretary of State to continue diplomatic efforts with international partners to secure means for third-country nationals and Afghans with visas to leave the country even after the U.S. military presence ends.

Our commanders also updated the President and Vice President on plans to develop ISIS-K targets. The next few days of this mission will be the most dangerous period to date. The President reaffirmed with the commanders his approval of all authorities they need to conduct the operation and protect our troops, and all reported back that they have the resources they believe they need to do so effectively.

The President and Vice President were joined by Secretary Blinken, Secretary Austin, Chairman Milley, Director Haines, Director Burns, National Security Advisor Sullivan, Ambassador Wilson, General McKenzie, Admiral Vasely, Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Finer, Homeland Security Advisor Sherwood-Randall, and other senior officials.

WH in-town pool report #11/ New press briefing time

From the White House:

'The press briefing will be at 1:45 PM.'

WH in-town pool report 12/ Afghanistan update update

The following statement, which was sent out in pool report #10 and attributed to a White House official, can now be attributed to Press Secretary Jen Psaki:

'The President met this morning in the Situation Room with his national security team, including our commanders and diplomats in the field. The Vice President joined by secure video teleconference. They advised the President and Vice President that another terror attack in Kabul is likely, but that they are taking maximum force protection measures at the Kabul Airport.

They reported that even in the face of those threats, our courageous service women and men are continuing to operate a historic evacuation operation. The U.S. military is airlifting out thousands of people every few hours. They continue to prioritize evacuating the remaining American citizens who have indicated that they wish to leave, and are engaged in a variety of means to get them to the airport safely. The President directed the Secretary of State to continue diplomatic efforts with international partners to secure means for third-country nationals and Afghans with visas to leave the country even after the U.S. military presence ends.

Our commanders also updated the President and Vice President on plans to develop ISIS-K targets. The next few days of this mission will be the most dangerous period to date. The President reaffirmed with the commanders his approval of all authorities they need to conduct the operation and protect our troops, and all reported back that they have the resources they believe they need to do so effectively.

The President and Vice President were joined by Secretary Blinken, Secretary Austin, Chairman Milley, Director Haines, Director Burns, National Security Advisor Sullivan, Ambassador Wilson, General McKenzie, Admiral Vasely, Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Finer, Homeland Security Advisor Sherwood-Randall, and other senior officials.'

WH in-town pool report #13/ Lunch lid

A lunch lid was called until 1.45pm.

WH in-town pool report #14/ Israeli PM departs

From the White House:

'The expanded bilat ended at 1:03 PM. The Prime Minister departed campus at 1:05 PM.'

WH in-town pool report #15/ More detailed POTUS comments about coronavirus

Here are the rest of POTUS's remarks with the Israeli Prime Minister in the Oval Office:

"It's great to have the prime minister here. We've become close friends. He's ridden the Amtrak train a lot from New York down to Wilmington, Delaware. I told you we have a few corporations in Delaware back in the days when he was in private practice.

"But he has and leads the most diverse government in Israeli history and we've got a big agenda today, starting with Covid, which we've been talking about and... our successful vaccination programmes and we've talked a little bit, we're going to continue to talk about the issue of booster shots."

Looking at Prime Minister Bennett, he said: "You started your programme a little early and met with great results. We're going to start mid-September but we're considering the advice you've given that we should start earlier.

"And this is promising, also, this booster programme is going to start here, September the 20th, pending approval of the FDA and a CDC committee of outside experts and the question raised is should it be shorter than eight months, should it be more or less five months, and that's being discussed. I spoke to Dr Fauci this morning about that.

"We're also going to discuss Israel's unwavering, unwavering commitment that we have in the United States to Israel's security and I fully, fully, fully support replenishing Israel's iron dome system.

"And we're also going to discuss the threat from Iran and our commitment to ensure Israel never develops a nuclear weapon. But we're putting diplomacy first, seeing where that takes us. But if diplomacy fails, we're ready to turn to other options.

"We'll support Israel's developing deeper ties as well with the Arab and Muslim neigbours and globally. That's a trend that I should be encouraged, not discouraged, and we'll do all we can to be value added.

"We're also going to discuss ways to advance peace and security and prosperity for Israels and Palestinians. We're also going to direct our teams to work toward Israel fulfilling the requirements of the visa waiver programme – get that done.

"So Mr Prime Minister, I want to thank you again for coming. The US will always be there for Israel. It's an unshakeable partnership between our two nations and I have known every Israeli prime minister since Golda Meir, gotten to know them fairly well, I look forward to us establishing a strong personal relationship."

Leaning over to shake hands, as cameras clicked, he added: "So welcome, welcome."

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett extended "condolences" and "deep sadness" for the loss of American lives in Kabul. He said America has "always stood up for us", especially in tough times. "I bring with me a new spirit. A spirit of goodwill. A spirit of hope. A spirit of decency and honesty. A spirit of unity and bipartisanship."

WH in-town pool report #16/ Two minute warning

We have a two minute warning for the White House press briefing.

WH in-town pool report #17/ Briefing starts

Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary, began the briefing at 1.54pm with some coronavirus vaccination figures.

WH in-town pool report #18/ Briefing ends

The White House press briefing ended at 2.49pm.

WH in-town pool report #19/ Lid

A lid was called at 3.07pm.

WH in-town pool report #20/ Afghanistan evacuation numbers

?From the White House:

'From August 27 at 3:00 AM EDT to August 27 at 3:00 PM EDT, a total of approximately 4,200 people were evacuated from Kabul. This is the result of 12 U.S. military flights (9 C-17s and 3 C-130s) which carried approximately 2,100 evacuees, and 29 coalition flights which carried approximately 2,100 people.

'Since August 14, the U.S. has evacuated and facilitated the evacuation of approximately 109,200 people. Since the end of July, we have re-located approximately 114,800 people.'

Foreign pool report #1 - Background

Good morning all,

I'm your foreign pooler (again) for the bilateral meeting between President Joe Biden and the Prime Minister of Israel, Naftali Bennett.

The meeting which was set to take place yesterday is now scheduled for 10:30am.

I'm resending the background for those who may have missed it yesterday.

This will be their 1st in-person meeting but they've already spoken on the phone. Joe Biden called the Israeli PM just 2 hours after Bennett took office (for context, POTUS waited about a month after his own inauguration to speak to then Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu)

At the end of June, POTUS met with then Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, just days before he left office.

This is PM Bennett's 1st official foreign trip since taking office in June. However, he did travel to Jordan for a then secret meeting with King Abdullah, which was later confirmed by the King himself.

On Tuesday before flying off to Washington PM Bennett said: "Joe Biden is a true friend of Israel. There is a new administration in the US and a new government in Israel, and I am bringing with me from Jerusalem a new spirit of cooperation," a sign that he is looking to turn the page on the tense relationship between his predecessor and Joe Biden.

PM Bennett arrived in Washington on Tuesday night.

On Wednesday, he met with Secretary of State Antony Blinken as well as Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan. There are no other official meetings on his agenda.

Naftali Bennett is 49 years old. He is the son of American immigrants to Israel.

Bennett served in the Israeli armed forces for several years in 90s.

He made his fortune in Israel's high-tech industry.

He started his political career as Netanyahu's chief of Staff in 2006. He later served in different ministerial positions from 2013 to 2020 under then PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

From 2012-2018, he led the Jewish Home party, then the New RIght party. In 2020, Bennett became the leader of the right-wing Yamina alliance.

PM Bennet took took office on June 13, ousting longtime PM Benjamin Netanyahu after the country's fourth parliamentary election in 2 years. He brought together a ruling coalition of 8 parties, ranging from the far left to far right and includes for the first time a small Islamist faction representing Israel's Arab minority.

Bennett will be in office for 2 years, having agreed to a rotating government with Yair Lapid, who is set to take over as PM in 2023.

Priorities for the meeting:

-Both sides have indicated that Iran would be top of the agenda.

The Israeli PM is opposed to the JCPOA and US attempts to re-enter the nuclear agreement.

Bennett told a cabinet meeting a few days ago that this would be his message to Joe Biden: "This is the time to stop the Iranians, not to give them a lifeline in the form of re-entering an expired nuclear deal."

The Israeli PM is expected to present a plan to contain the Iranian threat, both regarding the nuclear issue and Iran's influence in the region, though he hasn't given more details about that plan.

-WH Press Sec statement also mentions the Israeli/Palestinian issue.

PM Bennett opposes the creation of a Palestinian state and has said there will not be any peace talks with the Palestinians. (FYI his coalition is made up both of parties that are opposed to Palestinian statehood and some who support it)

He has also said that he would continue expanding settlements in the West Bank.

Another point of contention, the Biden administration's plan to reopen a consulate for Palestinians in Jerusalem.

For context, the meeting comes as tensions have flared up again along the Israel/Gaza border in recent days about 3 months after the 11-day war between Israel and Hamas.

-Other topics that are set to be discussed: climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Foreign Pool Report #2 - Israeli delegation

No changes to the delegation joining PM Bennett per Israeli embassy.

So here it is again

Meeting participants in the WH meeting with the PM:

Dr. Eyal Hulata
National Security Adviser
Head of National Security Council

Tal Gan-zvi
Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister

Shalom Shlomo
Cabinet Secretary Prime Minister's office

Lt. Gen. Avi Gil
Military Secretary to the Prime Minister

Gilad Erdan
Israel's Ambassador to the United States and the UN

Shimrit Meir
Foreign Policy Adviser
To the Prime Minister

Foreign Pool report #3

Joe Biden and Naftali Bennett spoke on the phone last night.

PM expressed his condolences and said Israel stood by the US.

Per Israeli side, Biden thanked Bennett « for his understanding regarding the change in the time of their meeting »

Here is the statement shared by from the Prime Minister's Media Adviser:

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett (Thursday, 26 August 2021):

"On behalf of the people of Israel, I share our deep sadness over the loss of American lives in Kabul. Israel stands with the United States in these difficult times, just as America has always stood with us. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of the United States."

PM Bennett: "Israel stands with the United States in these difficult times"

Foreign pool report #4 - Bennett arrival

The Israeli PM arrived at the White House at 10:51am.

Foreign pool report #5 - Meeting begins

Per WH:

The President's one-on-one bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Bennett began at 11:06 AM.

Also this readout from last night's phone call:

The President spoke with Prime Minister Bennett last night by phone to thank him for his willingness to postpone their meeting in light of the terror attacks in Kabul. The President also thanked the Prime Minister for his condolences on behalf of the people of Israel.

Foreign pool report #6

We entered the oval at 11:59am

Biden spoke first

Then Bennett

We were ushered out at 12:14pm

Neither took any questions.

Link to rought otter transcript if needed:

https://otter.ai/u/Sj11kgGztfKOEXnOldVH4HPrKNs

Quotes coming soon

FOreign Pool report #7 - Israel PM quotes

Here's are some quotes from Naftali Bennett (as always please check against tape)

Kabul attack

"First of all, on behalf of the Israeli people. We want to extend our condolences and deep sadness for loss of American lives in Kabul. The American servicemembers, lost their lives while on a mission to save other people's lives. And that's the very definition of courage and sacrifice, may they rest in peace."

Allies

"you've always stood up for us, especially during tough times. A few months ago, 1000s of rockets were being shot on Israeli towns and cities. And that's when friendship is really tested. We trust in your support Mr President and Israel knows that we have no better or more reliable allie in the world than the United States."

Threat to Israel

"we cannot lose sight for even one moment that we're in the toughest neighborhood in the world. We've got ISIS on our southern border, Hizbollah on our normal border, Hamas, Iranian militias around us. And all of them want to kill us, Israelis, they all want to annihilate the Jewish state. And that's why Israel has to stay overwhelmingly stronger than any of our enemies, and indeed of all our enemies combined."

Iran

"the main issue we're going to be talking about today here is Iran's race to a nuclear weapon. We talked about it inside the room. I was happy to hear your clear words, that Iran will never be able to Have a nuclear weapon, and you emphasized that we will try the diplomatic way but that there's other options that will work out. These days illustrate what the world would look like if a radical Islamic regime acquired a nuclear weapon, that marriage would be a nuclear nightmare for the entire world. Iran is the world's number one exporter, terror, instability, and human rights violations."

"we've developed a comprehensive strategy that we're going to be talking about, with two goals. The first goal is to stop Iran on its regional aggression and start rolling it back into the box. And the second is to permanently keep Iran, away from ever being able to break out the nuclear weapon."

COVID

"You were the first to call the pandemic, the pandemic of the unvaccinated and that is nothing more true. Just about a month ago I took a very tough decision, a policy decision that Israel would pioneer the booster shot, third shot. I can report to you, Mr President, to everyone, that we've reached almost 3 million Israelis that have received the booster shot. And the bottom line is it's safe. And it works. The good news. Finally, is that the tide is turning in Israel."

Partnership

"you and I(...) are going to write yet another chapter in the beautiful story of the friendship between our two nations, the United States of America, and the Jewish and democratic state of Israel. Both of us who seek to do good, need to be strong. Both of us who are a lighthouse in a very very strong world."

Foreign Pool Report #8 - Israeli PM has left

From the WH

The expanded bilat ended at 1:03 PM. The Prime Minister departed campus at 1:05 PM.