US Secretary of State Rubio held a press briefing today (Tuesday) in place of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who normally holds the daily press briefings, during which he addressed America's efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz shipping lanes.
Secretary Rubio referred to Project Freedom, the efforts to protect merchant vessels from Iranian attacks, and stated that the goal is "to rescue almost 23,000 civilians from 87 different countries that are trapped and left for dead in the Persian Gulf by the Iranian regime."
He stated that Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is "not just criminal," but "desperate and destructive," and called it "piracy."
"Nations from around the world, the overwhelming majority of whom are not even engaged in any military hostilities, are now at risk, not just of losing their cargo, but the lives of their own citizens, because of this blockade," he said, noting that the ships will eventually run out of food and drinkable water for their crews.
"These are innocent bystanders," Rubio declared. "These are countries and ships that have nothing to do with any of this, and nonetheless, are being caught in the middle of it and being held hostage, merely because Iran can do it. Just as the regime brutally slaughtered tens of thousands of its own citizens for the crime of peaceful protest."
The Secretary stated that ten civilian sailors have already died as a result of Iran's blockade and attacks and that multiple nations have asked for America's assistance in freeing their ships.
He called Project Freedom a "defensive operation" in which US forces will only open fire if attacked first.
When asked about the situation in Lebanon, Rubio stated that "there's no problem between the Lebanese government and the Israeli government. Israel doesn't claim that any land in Lebanon belongs to them."
He noted that the primary problem between Israel and Lebanon is the Hezbollah terrorist organization. "They terrorize and attack Israelis, but they also are inflicting tremendous damage on the Lebanese people. The reason why Lebanon gets attacked by Israel is because of Hezbollah, because Hezbollah is hiding in some house, launching rockets against Israelis."
He said that Israel's actions are a response to Hezbollah's threats and attacks, and stated that the goal is the disarmament of Hezbollah.