conference to combat combating aids and hiv. these are men and women a dedicated their own lives to saving the lives of others, and they were taken from us in a senseless act of violence. in this world today, we should not forget in the midst of conflict and killing, there are people like these, people focused on what can be built rather than destroyed. how they can define themselves not by what makes them different, but by the humanity that we hold in common. it is important to lift them up and to affirm their lives, and heed their example. the united states of america will continue to stand for the basic principle that people have the right to live as they choose, determine their own destiny, and it is on the side of truth.

let me take a couple of questions. >> on a technical matter, does the u.s. believe this passenger jet was targeted or the people that shot down might have been going after a military aircraft, and more broadly, the incident seems to escalate the crisis in the ukraine to a level we have not seen before. does that change your calculus in terms of what europe -- in terms of what the u.s. is asking europe to be doing? >> i think it is too early to be able to guess what the intentions of those that might have launched the missile might have had. i think we will see additional information surfacing over the next 24 hours, the next week, the next month.

what we know right now, what we have confidence in saying right now, is that a surface-to-air missile was fired and that is what brought the jet down. we know, or have confidence in saying that shot was taken within a territory controlled by the russian separatists. but i think it is very important for us to make sure that we do not get out ahead of the facts, and at this point, in terms of identifying specifically what individual or group of individuals or personnel ordered the strike, how would came about -- those are things that will be subject to additional information that we will be gathering, and we are working with the entire international community to make sure the focus is on getting to the bottom of this thing and being truthful. my concern is, obviously, that there has been a lot of misinformation generated in eastern ukraine generally.

this should snap everybody's heads to attention, and make sure we do not have time for propaganda, games. we need to know exactly what happened, and everyone is to make sure we are holding accountable those who committed this outrage. with respect to the second question, as you are aware, before this terrible incident happened, we had already ratcheted up sanctions against russia, and, i think, the concern, not just of russian officials, but of the markets, about the impact this could have on the russian economy is there for all to see. i made clear to president putin that our preferred path is to resolve this diplomatically, but that means that he and the russian government had to make a strategic decision. are they going to continue to support violent separatists

whose intent is to undermine the government of ukraine, or are they prepared to work with government of ukraine -- the government of ukraine to arrive at a cease-fire and a peace that takes to account the interest of all ukrainians? there has been some improved language at times over the last month coming from the kremlin and coming from president putin, but we have not seen an actual transition and different action that would give us confidence that that is the direction that they want to take. we will continue to make clear that as russia, you know, engages in actions that are supporting the separatists, that we have the capacity to increase the costs that we impose on

them, and we will do so, not because we are interested in hurting russia for the sake of hurting russia, but he does we believe in standing up for the basic principle that a country sovereignty and territorial eternity needs to be respected. it is not the united states, or russia, or germany, or any other country that should be deciding what happens in that country. >> at this point, do you see any u.s. military role that could be effective? >> we do not see a u.s. military role beyond what we have already been doing in working with our nato partners and some of the baltic states, giving them reassurances that we are prepared to do whatever is required to meet our alliance obligations. >> how much blame for this do you put on president putin and do you view this incident as a push to stronger action for europe? >> we do not know what happened yet, and as i said before, i do

not want to get out ahead of the facts. but what i do know is we have seen a ticking off of violence in eastern ukraine, that despite the efforts of the ukrainian government to abide by a cease-fire, and to reach out and agree to negotiations, including with the separatists, that has been rebuffed by the separatists. we know they are heavily armed and they are trained, and that is not an accident. that is happening because of russian support. it is not possible for the separatists to function the way they function, to have the equipment that they have, set aside what has happened with respect to the malaysian airline -- a group of separatists can not shoot down military planes,

or as they claim, fighter jets, without sophisticated equipment and training, and that is coming from russia. so, we do not yet know exactly what happened despite to the malaysian airline, but obviously we are drawing some conclusions given the nature of the shop that was fired. -- the shot that was fired. there are only certain types of antiaircraft missiles that can reach up 30,000 feet and shoot down passenger jets. we have increasing confidence that it came from areas controlled by the separatists, but without having a definitive judgment on those issues yet, what we do know is that the violence that is taking place there is facilitated, in part, in large part, because of

russian support. they have the ability to move those separatists in a different direction. if mr. putin makes the decision that we are not going to allow heavy armor mince and the flow of fighters into ukraine across the ukrainian-russian border, then it will stop. if it stops, then the separatists will still have the capacity to enter into negotiations and try to arrive at the sort of political accommodations and mr. putin himself says he wants to see -- that mr. putin himself says he wants to see. he has the most control over that situation, and so far at least he has not exercised it. >> sanctions in europe, will you push -- >> i think this will certainly be a wake up call for europe and the world that there are

consequences to an escalating conflict in eastern ukraine, that it is not going to be localized. it is not going to be contained. what we have seen here is just in one country alone, our great allies, the dutch, 150 or more of their citizens being killed. that, i think, sadly brings home the degree to which the stakes are high for europe, not simply for the ukrainian people. we have to be firm in our resolve and making sure that we are supporting the ukraine and efforts to bring about a just cease-fire and that we can move toward a political question -- solution. this is the last question. >> do we know about americans on board, and how do you prevent shocks to the global economy?

>> we have been pretty methodical over the last 24 hours in working through the flight manifest, and identifying which passengers might have had a u.s. passport. at this point, the individual that i mentioned is the sole person we can definitively say was a u.s. or dual citizen. because events are moving so quickly, i do not want to say with absolute certainty that there might not be additional americans, but at this stage, having worked through the list, been in contact with the malaysian government, which processed the passports as folks

were boarding, this is our best assessment of the americans that were killed. obviously, that does nothing to lessen our outrage about all of those families. regardless of nationality, it is a heartbreaking event. with the respect to the effect of sanctions on the economy, we have consistently try to tailor the sanctions in ways that would have an impact on russia, there economy, institutions, or individuals that are aiding and abetting in the activities taking place in eastern ukraine, while minimizing the middle -- the impact on not only the u.s. economy, but the global economy. it is a relevant consideration that we have to keep in mind. the world economy is integrated. russia is a large economy. there is a lot of financial flows between russia and the

rest of the world, but we feel confident that at this point the sanctions that we put in place are imposing a cost on russia and that their overall impact on the global economy is minimal. it is something we have to obviously pay close attention to, but contractual to -- treasury, in consultation with european partners have done a good job so far. all right? thank you very much, everybody. >> and, here is some reaction on twitter from members of congress. from indiana republican todd rokita -- and the chairman of the foreign affairs committee tweeted --

and congressman robert pittenger of north carolina says on twitter -- any comments are welcome time. coming up at 6:45 p.m. eastern, today's state department briefing with spokesman jen psak i. here is one exchange from the briefing. >> do you see this as an act of terrorism? >> i think again, we do not know the origin. see arse, any time we loss of innocent lives, that is a horror ethic act. we will see the investigation through. i'm not going to put additional labels on it beyond what the president and ambassador have -- >> is this an act of terrorism? >> again, i'm not going to put

additional labels on this. >> do you rollout it could have been an accident? >> we are not ruling out -- well, we do not feel this was an accident. you heard the president and ambassador power give very definitive remarks on this, but we are going to see the investigation through. >> vice president biden yesterday stated this was no accident. does the department standby those remarks? >> there have also been remarks from the president and from ambassador power as well. >> i think you muddied the waters a little bit here. >> ok. >> you do not believe this was an accident? in other words, you do not believe that whoever fired this missile was not aiming for something else, or to put it another way, you believe whoever fired dismissal intended to take ?own a passenger airplane >> i was not stating that.

i'm not going to go farther than i have gone here. >> and other words, it may have been an accident in terms of whoever fired this thing thought that they were hitting a military target? >> correct. >> that is a mistake. that is an accident. >> there are a range of ways of defining it, yes. thank you for your clarification. >> you are not saying that you know or believe that this wasraft, civilian plane, targeted by the people who fired dismissal? >> we do not know more than what i have just stated and what has been stated today. >> when you say, "we don't feel this was an accident," you are expressing a preliminary conclusion, correct? >> that is not my intention. we have been pretty clear while participating in the international investigation, we are going to let that conclude. there are a range of events and information available from what has happened on the ground recently. that is all relevant.

>> we are going back to square zero. >> i hope not. >> accident and mistake are different things. if you are saying, "we don't feel this was an accident," that means it's possible that the plane came down from the sky because something went wrong with the plane. >> let me be clear -- this happened 24 hours ago. we are participating in the investigation process. i am not going to prejudge beyond that, and i don't think i'm going to have much more to add today on it. >> when you say you don't feel this was an accident, you mean that whatever the motive for whatever whoever fired dismissal was shooting at, they were shooting at something, and this was not a malfunction of the lane -- is that what you mean? i think we are getting hung up here. "accident," you mean the engine failed or something like that -- is that

what you are saying? >> there is no evidence of that to date. i do not have anything more in terms of analyzing what exactly happened, but obviously, there is a range of contextual information from what is happening on the ground that is relevant. >> you can see all of today's state department briefing in about half an hour here on c-span. in addition to the malaysian airline shot down over the ukraine, she answers questions about israel's military action in the gaza strip. that is coming up at 6:45 p.m. eastern here on c-span. the downed malaysian plane was also a topic at the pentagon admiral johnear kirby, the pentagon press secretary, briefed reporters. he said the plane was most likely hit by a surface-to-air missile shot by russian-backed separatists in the area.

>> afternoon, everybody. before i take your questions, just a couple of comments. airlinesut malaysia flight 17. this morning, the secretary spoke with the malaysian defense minister, who offered his deepest condolences and those of all the men and women of the department of defense for those who lost loved ones aboard flight 17. our thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by this tragedy. the secretary reiterated to the minister that the united states is prepared to assist in an international investigation, and they agreed that the investigation must be credible, transparent, and unimpeded. all parties in the vicinity of the crash site -- russian, pro-russian separatists, and ukrainian -- must agree to an immediate cease-fire, which is the only way to ensure safe and unfettered access to investigators. the integrity of all the potential evidence and the recovery of the remains. we are still covering facts, and investigators need to be given

the time and space to do their jobs. clearly, as the president noted a short while ago, we see strong evidence that alicia airlines flight 17 was hit by a surface-to-air missile at an altitude of 37,000 feet and that it was launched from a location near the border controlled by russian separatists. this incident obviously occurred in the context of a conflict fueled by a russian support were ukrainian -- hardened, russian separatists and that support has included arms, material, and training. as we investigate who did this and why, this terrible tragedy underscores the need for russia to take immediate and concrete steps to de-escalate the crisis in ukraine and to support the canadians government plan for a cease-fire. i have one update -- the crew aboard the [indiscernible] has neutralized over 7% of the chemicals.

with that, i will take your questions. >> just a few days ago, theorists european command talk a little bit about the transfer of russian heavy weapons across the border into ukraine. the president spoke about training them. kitty go through this and tell us the latest u.s. military assessment of what the russians have been doing and transferring heavy weapons, surface to air missiles, other drought tolerant to other -- and other military equipment across the border? >> no hint that russian support for the separatist have seized.

we have reason to believe that russia continues to provide them with heavy weapons and other military equipment, financing as well. they continue to allow these russian fighters junior answer ukraine's really. -- to answer ukraine freely. tanks and personnel have made their way across the border. as been a steady concerted campaign by russia's military to continue to support and resource, advise the separatist. >> have you seen any video there, any evidence that an essay 11 or brute missile system -- that an sa-11 or brute missile system was taken across the border? and was the training needed given? >> i do not have any information about a system in that transit.

we're not ruling anything in or out at this point. it is a sophisticated system. the missile itself, the sa-11 which we believe was used to down flight 17 is a sophisticated piece of technology. it is strange to think that it could be used by separatist without some measure of russian support and technical assistance. it is strange to think that they could do that. >> do you have evidence? >> there's a lot that is going to be investigated. we want to let investigators do their work. i do not have an indication now that a system was wrought over

-- brought over, and we do not know exactly who was responsible for firing that missile, but it is sophisticated. >> was the level of training and systems? does it include russian troops going across the border to act as training and advisors side-by-side with the separatist? >> we do not have any reason to suspect that they have not provided some measure of support on the other side of that order. these paramilitary forces that we do not talk about as much anymore certainly did not act or behave or organized to resources like some ragtag militia. nobody is suggesting that the russian military advice and assistance has not somehow

crossed the border. it is just unclear exactly how much and when and who. that is what the investigators are going to look at and that is what we need to let them do. >> it is in a quentin is that the president announced sanctions directly in the maker of this system just debuted -- is it a go when students that the president announced sanctions act directly against the maker of the system just a day before? >> i will not get into speculation. it was just another round of targeted sanctions designed to change the calculus of president clinton's decisions and behavior -- putin's decision-making and behavior. >> what is the working theory about the intent of the and talented military -- about the intent? was this an intended military target gone awry, or an act of terrorism?

>> we do not know. >> what is your working theory? >> we do not have a working theory, we just saw this happen yesterday. there are teams investigators trying to get through the site. we have to let them do their job. >> people list parliament have said there about 10,000 to 12,000 regular russian troops. is that still your estimate? have the forces changed the attack yesterday -- since the attack yesterday?

>> i do not know of any major change to that residence. in the still about 10,000 to 12,000, it fluctuates a little bit from week to week. the point is that over time there has been a steady increase of these combined arms tactical battalions across the border on the russian side to the southeast of ukraine. they are close to the border. they are many places closer than those forces who were aligned along the east. we had tens of thousands that were along the eastern border with ukraine, but not as close as these units appeared to be. all they're doing is worth your escalating testing -- further escalating tensions. they are there, they are growing in size week by week and they continue to do nothing more than as you leave the tension -- escalate the tension. >> is the process separate from the -- >> i have not seen any indication that they are act of

late involved in the provision of support to separatist. but they are continuing to mass alongside that southern part of the border. >> two questions. does the massing of forces include air defense artillery systems like the sa-11 that was used in that heavy sea air defense? -- that was used? >> we have assessed that these are combined arms units. it is not just infantry troops, but they have artillery capability. they have armored capability. they are combined arms. they are very pretty. this is a very capable force. smaller number than what was aligned along the border before. i do not have a complete inventory. greg do have an estimate of about 12,000 troops on the russian side.

obviously the u.s. has been tracking the work of russians advisers and intelligence services and ukraine. is there an estimate of the size of the advisory presence inside the eastern ukraine by russian forces? is in handful, isn't it thousand? -- is it a thousand? >> we do not have that number. it is less important than the fact that they continue to do this. we continue to see the support and resourcing and advise given to the separatist groups. we have ever indication that that support is russian, coming from the russians. we believe that there is russian support for the separatist inside ukraine. >> when the general was here a couple of weeks ago he said

specifically that the ukrainian separatists were receiving training on russian territory using pharaoh colborne antiaircraft systems -- a vehicle borne antiaircraft systems. can you elaborate? >> i do not know what system he was referring to. we would agree with his assessment of the some separatists have received some training, in these vehicle borne systems. there's no question about that. i do not have an estimate of how many or who is doing it. quite it would raise particular alarms, would it not? that is pretty serious. quentin is pretty serious. we have been taking it seriously. we're been monitoring the situation is mostly as we can. nobody in the pentagon has been shy about talking about the continued rat by these

separatist elements in the >> is there increased surveillance along the border in the wake of the disaster? >> we are continuing to monitor, i do not have anything to add. >> were there any warnings given to commercial airline companies, or any civilian airline authorities about these assist them's home as well as training for those -- about these systems or the training for them? >> there were warnings put out to civilian aircraft to take care over ukrainian airspace and to fly at higher altitudes. you would have to talk to the

faa and other agencies that handle that. obviously, if you're going to issue a warning like that, it is based on concerns let you have about surface to air missile capability activities. >> were there any indications that there were any other literary planes in the sky at that time? and is there any concern that perhaps this is a situation that is spiraling out of control and perhaps russia does not have the control of the separatists?

>> on your first question, i do not know. this is ukrainian airspace controlled by ukrainian authorities, and i defer to them to speak about what was lying in the air at the time. we would not have that capability here. under -- on your second question, i think the resident has been very clear about the responsibilities of president putin and moscow. we do not know of any sign that it is stopping. >> there had been previous to yesterday tragedy, two or three ukrainian transport planes shot down.

does your intelligence and knowledge indicate that the system that shot down the plane yesterday was a more powerful or more sophisticated system requiring more trimming or one similar to the system that was used to shoot down the ukrainian transport plane? >> we are investigating this right now. it is unclear of exactly what rundown the other aircraft you're talking about. we know they were shot down, but those incidents are still being looked into. i do not have any great visibility on what rot them down. -- brought them down. i would like to bring you back to the larger port, the the -- pointed that the aircraft are being shot down. despite who is pulling the trigger, and is doing nothing to do you escalate the crisis in ukraine and bring a peaceful resolution.

and now innocent people simply flying from one city to another have been killed and been brought into this brave let's not lose sight of the big picture here. it matters a lot less exactly what system that was in more than it happened and it needs to stop. >> you believe that whoever shot this plane down could have mistaken it for a ukrainian transport? >> i'm not going to get into the motivations, the intent, the reasoning that went into this. and that is for the best investigators to figure out. we do not have that level of detail at this point. >> if in fact it was an accident, would that reveal a lack of training? >> we do not know. we are not an expert on that system.

i would not try to get appearance i sector for you. the investigators will pile through this and figure that out. >> who are these investigators? >> an international investigation -- >> does this include the dod? >> there is no place for a dod representative on this, i will not speak for the other agencies, but i think there may be some entities from the federal government that will go over and participate. i do not have the makeup of the team, it will be an international team. >> no role for europe's military in responding to this. whatever happened to that list of requests for equipment that the ukrainians sent at the beginning of this?

>> we continue to review request for ukrainian -- ukrainian requests for military assistance. that remains on the nonlethal site right now. some $33 million that the president has authorized of material has been getting to the ukrainian armed forces and border services shared the support continues to flow, we continued to take a look at their needs and address each in turn. >> is there any -- do you have a more complete list? >> there has been more. radios, body armor, individual first aid kit and wesley being

mad, uniform items. over the next few months additional items will start to move through the bird earmark process, to include night vision goggles, thermal imager's, disposal robots, and some radios. barb wire, alarms systems, at invaders, trucks, generators, that kind of thing. all of this is a package of more than $33 million now that the president has approved. that continues to flow. >> it has been a longtime since they requested that. >> it is working through the procurement process, i do not

have any idea when enter the process, but it will enter soon. rights could this be a proxy war between u.s. and russian if they were to provide this? >> the security of ukraine continues to be violated by its neighbor in russia, and that is to stop. >> to knowledge to has the black box? >> i do not know. >> is there concern that they made tampered with? >> we set up the outset that we want safe and unimpeded access to the site so they can do the kind of work you need to do to reboot recovery of the black box, so we can find out all the circumstances surrounding the spirit grace have the ukrainians asked for legal assistance -- surrounding the crash. >> have the ukrainians asked for leathel assistance? >> i'm not going to get into the details of their request. to this data has been a remains

on the nonlethal side. >> are you guys seeing this training and support for separatists taking place on the russian side of the border he acted easy some of this happening and then they're coming back into ukraine? >> i do not have a specific zip code for you for where this is going on. we continue to see support for the separatist which does include a measure of training, and i do not have the details on exactly who is doing it, wind, and on exactly what systems. we do believe that this support, and it is not just training and advice, it is actually resourcing and equipment. i wanted to give exit the larger

point, that that has to cease. >> i know you may not be able to say how you know this, but you're in fact seeing one care equipment from russia crossing the border into ukraine? that is what the intelligence shows you? >> i will not speak about intelligence matters from the podium. we just continued to see support from the separatist to include the things that the general talked about, and we continue to see that support, and continues to be a skilled trade dangerous. it needs to stop. i will not talk about the measures in which we believe -- i will not talk about specific

intelligence. we see some equipment going across the border. >> you said you were not aware of any mobile vehicle systems going across. >> that is correct. >> the sanctions list included some, but excluded the largest arms at the border. >> smith powers at the u.n. laid out that there's no evidence that any ukrainian air defense systems have been compromised in that area. when that alternative the bible and tha -- be viable in your opinion. >> i do not have any indication that that particular service to air system -- surface to air

system, or a particular surface to air system was moved across the border into ukraine. i do not have any specific indication of that. i would not be able to talk to you about it right now. >> this week was there any relief -- belief in this building that the separatists possessed this kind of weaponry? >> we do not have perfect visibility into what the separatists have. we know that there was a capability that they were aspiring to. >> to be clear have you seen any antiaircraft weapons across the border into ukraine.

>> i have no information about specific antiaircraft systems crossing the border into a great -- into ukraine. we have seen major equipment move across the border into ukraine from russia. i do not have any specific indication of air defense systems or surface to air emissions -- missiles. >> they could have crossed border potentially covered up, out of u.s. satellite view? >> it is not out of the realm of the possible, but i do not have any information. >> power the -- there was a lot

of shifting of the u.s. forces to that region. this defensive posture, do you have some sort of idea how many forces are still there and how many you land on shifting in the future? >> i would have to get back to you on that with a list of what european command has in the region. that would be a better place to go than here for that. more broadly, as secretary hagel has made clear we will cost only review our's your -- our posture, and make your interaction with our nato allies and partners more robust. we have already done that with the air policing mission. any number of exercises and operations in the black sea since this crisis began. the president has been very clear that he wants the staff and general to look for ways to

bolster that effort. i think you will see consistently, as time goes gone, we're going to continue to do that. when we can promote we will announce it. >> can you clarify, because the president said he did not see any role for the u.s. military interest on the to this -- to risk onto this -- military response to this. you described we were providing goggles, safety vest, etc. is that something that is also being reconsidered in light of this? >> the president has been very clear from the outset. there is not going to be a u.s. military solution for the crisis in ukraine. what we have been doing is efforts to bolster and reinforce

and support our nato allies and partners in the region to look for ways to improve our operability and capability, to demonstrate our commitment to article five of the nato treaty. that is what you are going to continue to see astute -- see us do. tore has been no attention how the u.s. military solution to the crisis inside ukraine -- , we askedher question for various items of military systems. the focus of our efforts to date has been providing nonlethal assistance. review thosey requests. it takes a look at what ukraine needs and what the internet agency, what the agency is willing to provide.

the focus remains nonlethal. >> there is no consideration expediting legal aid. >> we are constantly reviewing it. i have time for one more. >> just to sum up, ambassador -- and you keep talking about investigators and is the only real question whether it was russian with the separatists who fired -- that is the only question outstanding at this point? >> i am not an docraft investigators so i not know all of the things they are looking at. we have very strong evidence that it was a surface to air fa-11, fired from a location controlled by russian separatists near the border, is likely on the ukrainian side of the border. of that is the stronger evidence we have now.

beyond that, exactly who, whether it was russian military or it was a separatist units that fit it, we do not know. whether it was a system that was driven across the border and handed off we do not know. answering some of those questions is what the investigator gets that. tank you everybody. we appreciate it. >> the united nations security council also met this morning to discuss the malaysian airliner that was shot down over ukraine. right now a few minutes of her statement. >> yesterday we were shocked by the downing of malaysian airlines flight 17. and 98 people aboard, 283 passengers and 15 crew were killed.

as we stared at the passenger list yesterday he saw next to three of the passenger names a i. as we now know the letter i stands for infant. to the families and friends of the victims it is impossible to find words to express our condolences. we can only commit to you that we will not rest until we find out what happened. a full credible and unimpeded international investigation must begin immediately. perpetrators must be brought to justice. they must not be sheltered by any state of the united nations. let me share our assessment of the evidence so far. airlines malaysian flight 17, carrying the 298 people, from amsterdam to kuala

lumpur was likely down by surface to air missile. operated from a separatist held location in eastern ukraine. the airliner was traveling at a cruise altitude of 33,000 feet and its speed was typical for an airliner. flight tracking data was publicly available on the internet. there was nothing threatening or provocative. operational systems located near the border, only the fa 11 and fa 22 systems are capable of hitting an aircraft at this flight's altitude of 33,000 feet. range --le out shorter

they are not capable of hitting an aircraft at this altitude. fa 11 sounday and system was reported near snooze me by a western reporter. separatists initially claimed responsibility for shooting down a military transport plane and posted videos that are now being connected with the malaysian airlines crash. separatist leaders also bolstered on social media about shooting down the plane but later deleted these messages. because of the technical thatexity it is unlikely the separatists could effectively operate the system without assistance from does weeable personnel, cannot rule of technical

assistance from russian personnel and operating assistance -- operating the systems. owe are not aware of any ukrainian system in the area of the shootdown. more importantly since the beginning of this crisis ukrainian air defenses had not fired a single missile, despite several alleged violations of their airspace by russian aircraft. follows a pattern of action by russian backed separatist. on june 13 separatist shutdown the ukrainian transport plane, carrying 40 transporters and nine crew. we received words that the ukrainians down to a helicopter, killing all nine on board. separatists claimed credit for the downing of the ukrainian military cargo plane, flying at 6000 meters. on july 16 they claimed credit for the downing of ukrainian fighter jet.

if indeed russian backed separatist were behind this attack on a civilian airliner they would have good reason to cover up evidence of their crime. extremely important that an investigation be commenced immediately. the oscerst instance, special monitoring mission should act as a first responder, laying the foundation for efforts i other international organizations and individual nations, including citizens who are victims of this tragedy. president poroshenko has invited the independent and credible international civil aviation organization to join in investigation. international investigators must be rented immediate and unfettered access to the crash site. pro-russianncerned, separatists, and ukraine should support an immediate cease-fire to prevent access by international investigators.

look to reach an agreement with separatists and others in the region to make this possible. all evidence should remain undisturbed and any evidence removed from the site should be promptly returned and handed over. >> you can see all of samantha powers statement at the security council tonight on c-span at 8:20 eastern. remarks from the ambassadors from russia, ukraine, and galatia. state department spokesman said the u.s. released a lot of -- it was not accidentally shot down yesterday in ukraine. her briefing with reporters also touched on the conflict between israel and hamas and nuclear negotiations with iran. >> we have one item for all of

you at the top. we condemned the state of iraq and -- stoning of a woman yesterday in syria. this is the latest example of infamous atrocities against syrian people. they are a terrorist organization with a proven agenda of grotesque violence and againston, which runs the syrian revolution's goals of freedom and dignity. it seeks to distort religion solely to obtain power through violence. been clear that all those who commit crimes must be held accountable. the united states regularly reports on violence against women and girls around the world and supports efforts to prevent and respond to such violence, including advancing accountability by working with law enforcement, supporting civil society's efforts him and

engaging with critical stakeholders. we raise these issues with world leaders in an international forum such as the united nations for collective actions against these egregious crimes. >> there was no two-minute warning at all. >> i believe there was, you may not have heard it. we have a technical issue. >> not as if i think you are trying to escape. let's start with the plane. the president said there was at least one american on board. was this person traveling with a u.s. passport? i believe there are still three it possible -- is any of those are american citizens? >> we will answer all of those questions.

airlinesay malaysian -- information we took steps to verify whether any of the passengers were also u.s. citizens. we check each name against our passport records. there wasn't biographical data available either. we need to be sure we are confident in our result before notifying family members. there are four individuals that malaysian airlines has not identified nationalities for. we don't know the nationalities of those individuals. through the manifest because there isn't biographical data available.

we are continuing to do our due diligence to match any available data to ensure there aren't nationals in the manifest. >> you have gone through all of the names. up asly one who popped holding a u.s. passport -- >> there were no individuals holding u.s. passport. >> one victim with the president named that was a dual citizen but did not have a u.s. passport. as -- i am not sure they possessed one. >> if you check all the names against your passport data, wouldn't it show up if he had one, whether or not he had used it to get on the plane or not? >> i would remind you there are sometimes names that are common names. possess, or did not

whether or not he used it, did or did not possess a u.s. passport? , he is a dual citizen. what passport he possessed i would have to check if that is how we determined. >> the state department does not know if this guy -- >> clearly we knew he was a dual citizen. i don't have any additional information. >> does that mean if you typed in jennifer into the passport records -- >> i am a u.s. citizen. i would board a plane with a u.s. passport. --not all u.s. citizens are all u.s. citizens have u.s. passports. including 24 or three that are not identified by nationality, none of those people are u.s. citizens. is that what you are saying? >> we're still doing a review, given there isn't biographical data available for a number of individuals. we are doing due diligence to

make sure we -- before we make that confirmation. >> you can't say for sure that none of the total number of people on the plane actually held a u.s. passport? >> none of them boarded a plane. why just don't understand you cannot tell, you cannot go in and see if that person has a passport. >> i am happy to double check that for you. them are you aware of any discussions from this building? between secretary kerry and others -- >> secretary kerry has not made calls to russian or ukrainian authorities. we haveremind you that a number of senior officials who have been in touch with ukrainian and russian

authorities. groundly boots on the that you have seen the calls spread out by the white house. >> this is not something that is going on. i think it reflects the state of chaos. does that help the distraction? have a good weekend. >> they are having context but not the secretary's level. are there any plans for there to be such contexts or any plans for the secretary to potentially travel to deal with this situation? the reason i ask is ambassador power made some pretty powerful strong accusations, allegations against the russians.

i wonder if anyone believes the administration would be worthwhile to pursue these with russian officials were whether you decided that it is more wait until an investigation is finished? >> our focus is on seeing through a full credible and thorough investigation. i can give you an update that resources united states have sent. there is no current plans for the secretary to travel to the region. he always has his backpack. i'm sure he would be happy to do that. the president repeated a number as evidence and data that is available about what is happening on the ground. they both reaffirm the fact that we are not going to prejudge the investigation. we want to see that move forward.

let me just finish and then we will go. that --inly understand our focus is, as the president said, continuing to recall -- to call for a reduction in tension and escalation. the secretary or anyone in the administration is certainly -- certainly willing and ready to do that. we have offered the government , boeing, malaysia, the netherlands, and the european civil aviation conference. we have offered assistance to the ukrainian government, including personnel and resources from the fbi, which the ukrainians have accepted.

the ntsb will be sending one investigator to the ukraine. the timing is being determined and our response is being guided by events as they unfold via our understanding is the fbi's preparing to give -- to deploy at least one fbi personnel member to ukraine. it is also not clear on the timing of that. we will be responsive to their needs moving forward. >> she presented items and evidence and data. was watching a different security council meeting. she certainly made some strong accusations but i don't think she presented any evidence to -- backm up three and

them up. is there evidence and data that ?ou have there are clearly people on the russian side who do not buy this. what i was referring to, and i am sorry you disagree with my terms, was the information that is available, the context that has been happening on the ground, which is what she outlined. obviously we are going to see the investigation through and we want that to be a credible international investigation. there isn't a separate process that we are undergoing. >> so you are saying you are not willing to make the evidence and data you have public. a >> what i am referring to is what she stated publicly, which is the presence of certain systems along the border, which

is the fact that -- and many of them are public records. it is important for context but we will see the investigation -- we assessed that and clearly it is a finding by the intelligence community, because they were the ones that use the language, we assess it was fired from -- >> sure. >> where is the evidence that black -- the evidence that backs that up? is likely we will provide that through the investigation. >> do you understand how there are people who are skeptical of what she said, especially given pay this un security council presentations by americans? if you are pretty convinced yout it i would appeal to

to make some of this information public. she really didn't. >> the facts of what we have been seeing on the ground, maybe the more accurate way of describing. >> i have a number of areas related to this that i would like to pursue. there has been a lot of discussion of a global international investigation from the united states that there is spoke people would like to see here. under what offices with they like to see an international investigation pursue? >> this happened in the territory of ukraine. >> they have agreed to participate in any investigation.

these reports just came out if you just saw them. playing the role here as well and they only limited access and left after 75 minutes. they're are also calling for the final report or product of this investigation, also to be international and in character. >> she makes it an international process. >> the outcome of the investigation in terms of culpability and so forth -- >> if you like participation and expertise provided -- you have

seen a broad level of interests and ukrainians have requested the assistance from a range of international organizations and countries as well. distinctionng a between the investigation and potential prosecutions that may flow there from -- am asking if your desire to see an end to -- to see an investigation is mired by desires to see prosecution, any potential prosecution also retain some kind of international flavor or character. yet >>ot quite there individuals are not more over time. the speciale of expertise they have in criminal investigations. we will see what they get to in the process. >> secretary kerry had canceled his appearance at the synagogue here in washington.

discussions from counterparts around the world, you just told us that counterparts do not include anyone from russia or the ukraine. perhaps later when we do gaza we can reserve that. it gives the flavor of what he is working on last night. he and senior members of the administration were in the last night through the inter-agency. >> what are you talking about their exactly? meeting?ncipals >> there are a range of ways to engage. and inainly on the phone discussions about how to address -- there were a number of statements put out and there are a number of efforts to work on those as well freedom last night

or yesterday and today he has tony blair with the malaysian foreign minister, dutch foreign minister, cutlery foreign minister, the arab league secretary-general, he spoke last night with the .gyptian foreign minister once last night, with prime minister netanyahu. we said you saw the readout we put out last night. he was engaged. there are times when he was back and forth and spoke with some of them multiple times last evening. >> to proceed to the specific points of contention today, first ukrainian security services released what they claimed were trans ribs that were intercepted involving russian military officials.

purportedly drippy discussing this attack. do you have calls to doubt that have cause to doubt the authenticity? >> i do not have any analysis to provide. >> the russian defense ministry disclosed it has intercepted and that this -- intercepted the activity of ukrainian radar on that day when this attack occurred. -- 25 kilometers each of the nasca does the united states have any .ssessment

demo one point ambassador >> one point ambassador powermate is while they have sa-11's in their aware of, we are not any systems in the area of the shootdown. it is obviously militant information. these other installations could have been the argent point for dismissal? >> i think she is stating what we were aware of at this time. obviously events are just over 24 hours old. that is why we're going to focus on the investigation.

it is kind of a term of art. is that high confidence? i am going to leave it with the president of the united states. there is a range of information as you noted in your question that we do not always speak about publicly. i believe that is what he was referring to. point --lified at one does not strike you of being an important semantic difference

there? >> i don't think it was meant to be a difference. those statements were very coordinated and similar. thing she said, we assess malaysian airlines flight 17 carrying these 298 people from amsterdam to kuala lumpur was likely down by surface to air missile. is the word "likely," is she saying it is the missile that is likely or the rebel held territory that is likely part of this. >> we have some information available about what happened. we know we are confident in what and where can the questions are who and why and i think that is what the investigation will be exploring. you heard the president also speak to that. we do the president said

not have a definitive judgment on that you seem to be rather definitive on it. a good sense to the ambassador to the u.n.. him we are going to see the investigation through as we have more information. >> it is not a slamdunk. >> i am not sure what that means but go ahead. is there any doubt about who those four individuals -- what they may have been doing on the plane? there is no suspicion about who they were or they have not been identified? i think it is just that information about their identities. >> going back to the point about the international investigation, it is an interesting point under whose offices -- apart from the fact that it happened on , surely therritory russians might be in a position to contest the results of any

investigation if they feel they are not part of it. going to make sure the results of this investigation are not contested by the russians? >> i don't know we can ensure that. again it is only natural that this took place in ukrainian territory that they would have the lead on the investigation. that is a pretty standard procedure. they have welcomed and invited in a range of international that is an clearly indication of their openness to an international investigation. want the russians involved? , i am not in a position to make a decision on that. we are not the lead on the investigation. >> there wasn't a call, unless i missed something -- correct.

>> i realize the president spoke yesterday. him is there a reason he is not trying to reach out? isn't is something they should be talking about? >> it is nothing other than there is a great deal of focus at a very senior level in the industry should on this issue. they spoke with president putin yesterday. it he spoke with the president of ukraine yesterday. a needrtain if there is that secretary kerry would be more than happy to speak with -- we'll assume it happens in the coming days. >> the government had come from the russians. at this point you need to be having some kind of discussions with your russian counterparts. if >> we have a large embassy there. in have a great deal of engagement with russians created i am not going to predict -- i

do not have those plans yet in front of me. , let's say the essay, 11 -- sa-11 was likely used to shoot the plane down, is that among the material that the russians sent into ukraine according to more information? , i believe they have referred to puke missiles. we have not specified those that level of detail. we do not have information we can share on that particular missile. marie, and other officials were talking about goinges, along with tanks

from russia into the ukraine to supply the separatists, did those missiles include sa levinsohn? sa-11s?de >> we do not have any more information to share. >> you do not have any information to share with us about whether you even know for sure that sa-11's were in? , i do not have any information to share on the types of surface to air missiles we have seen in the hands of russian separatists. if this is among the arsenal that you say was -- >> i would remind you that aside from that one of the points that ambassador powermate this was there was a system by a by a westerner reporters spotted hours before the

incident with an sa-11. >> i understand them. i am wanting to know if you believe sa-11's were among the things that were sent in over the course of the past month or two months -- >> if there am -- if there's wee information available will be glad to share it. >> regardless of whether they are on the russian side of the ofder or it came from one the separatists, do you feel russia has a responsibility here? they had operatives that helped and they just gave them a weapon and instruction manual. >> that is not at all what we said or the u.n. ambassador said. they laid out specific details from the events we see happening on the ground. all of that is important context. we are not going to prejudge the outcome of the investigation. aside from the

specific tragic event we have concerns about the range of steps that were outlined, including providing access to weapons systems, providing material to the separatists. we are going to see the investigation through before we make a judgment. >> do you think this will in any president putin's calculus in terms of support for the separatists or for his bid to destabilize ukraine? >> it certainly should. it was a wake-up call to the world to many european countries and certainly should be to russia as well. given all these events this is somethingoncern and that we think certainly president clinton and the >>sians should take creative do you think this will harden any european resolve in terms of severity of the measures you have been considering? >> we cannot make it for prediction of that for obvious reasons.

certainly seeing the perfect -- the horrific events that happened yesterday and all the information that is available should be a wake-up call. >> are you can push them to take a tougher line on russia? >> we are going to see this investigation through. we have been engaged in discussions about sanctions for months. we will see how this proceeds. those will continue regardless. >> after ambassador power's comments and the president's commons, but in particular ambassador power's comments, how can you say we're not going to be judge the outcome of this investigation? she outlined what you assess, of your looking into this so far.

and the russians were blamed for it, saying it came from a rebel held area and it was a specific kind of missile that was used. of it seems to me that's donedging, or you have your own investigation and those are the results. >> we are participating in the in turn national investigation. there is a range of information, most of which is publicly available in ambassador power laid it out in remarks this morning. that is all relevant context created there is an official process that will be seen through. .> it is not public information >> i said the vast majority. >> it was fired from rebel held territory. of >> i said the vast majority.

>> i understand that. but in presenting those conclusions or assessments, that seems to me that there has been what happened.f >> that is not the intention and i point to where she stated in her remarks a reference to the fact that there will be an investigation. >> near the end she said this war must end, russia can end this war, russia must end this war. how is that not a read -- not a prejudgment of the situation? there is a concern here outside of this. there is an ongoing concern about the escalation and certainly outside of this investigation we have remaining concerns about the steps of russia and the materials they provided. >> you do not regard what she said and what the president said

as prejudging the outcome? correct. >> why are you tying this incident -- if you do not know and aren't prejudging that -- i know you are not prejudging the exact details. it seems that these events are a direct result of the conflict in ukraine, of which he said russia is the main instigator. a >> i don't think that is what they said at all. this there ise of no way, given the events that happened in ukraine, given there are accusations being tied back and forth, i can assure you cnn and every other outlet has been tying this to the events happening on the ground. at thate we look context and the concern about rising escalation. for a returne call to a discussion about a cease-fire. of theainly the context last several months, given the

accusations, was incredibly relevant. >> you say you believe the separatists were responsible. foryou are blaming russia support of the separatists. wouldn't that logically point to russia as having some kind of culpability here? >> again, when there is an inclusion of the investigation we will have more to say about what culpability is and what it means. >> ukraine should oppose its airbus -- its airspace. >> we have not seen that particular comment. you may have all seen this. events, after recent determined that -- the faa has

issued a notice to airmen to prohibit u.s. flight operations within to flight information regions in eastern ukraine. that was obviously a recent steps taken since the events yesterday. certainly this area, aside from -- an, which there was a aviation regulation in place, this has been a flight area. >> in addition to what the ambassador said, i raise the question of why controllers would have routed this jet over an area that was in a conflict zone. do you have any response or reaction to that kind of question being raised? >> i think it is important to remind everyone that this action

the conflict there was caused by the intervention and escape of russian separatists supported by russia. the otherwise there are certain regulations that the faa and other flight organizations put into place. him there wasn't one over this particular area of eastern ukraine. >> you think it is irrelevant? >> it is important to note that a number of operators over time have chosen to voluntarily alter ther group beyond obstruction in the crimean peninsula but it never was a requirement or regulation. >> his raising the question, why did the air traffic and troll move over this area, you don't think that is particularly relevant to the investigation? >> it was open airspace. there was planes flying over it.

>> president in his comments mr. night, and i believe ladder off, all say they believe this would not have happened would have been for the cranium government resuming its military operation in the east. him what is your reaction to that? >> it is important to remember the entire conflict in eastern ukraine is due to the illegal intervention of russian the support of russia with military equipment and other materials, that is where the can't act came from. we are here. there is no other reason.

>> the entire aviation industry and we have half an hour this incident. up to germany and these kinds of weapons are concerned, are there -- it iss that also incident. there is an investigation that is ongoing with international support about this specific incident and the caution anybody about what that means to other countries. there are steps the faa has taken with other national or

international aviation outlets that may take similar steps. >> 75 minutes. a huge amount of territory. >> that is why we are very concerned and those that we want to participate need to give unfettered access. we did not see that when individuals were there for 75 minutes. does the united states government have any information about the whereabouts at the blackbox. >> still await definitive judgment. and likely culpability for this

attack, is it fair to say that the united states, given the case that ambassador power laid -- at leasteached reached a preliminary conclusion about those matters? obviously ambassador power would not have said that if there wasn't a reasonable belief that that was accurate information. >> a conflict of interest that people might see, the u.s. u.n. -- thet the u.s. government isn't sending the fbi to also be part of this investigation and this report. couldn't it be difficult for the results of this report to stick? we are already hearing a line

from the u.s. government that they believe it is russia's fault. it is not exactly what either the president or ambassador powers and read. they both made clear there is an investigation we will see if rue -- that we will see through. the fbi clearly has a range of important expertise and criminal investigations. it will be a range of expertise and entities that will participate in this investigation.

is that what raises the question? >> she is referring to the .echnical complexity those wouldn't knowledgeable officials be former soviet soldiers? she is not intending to make the butsation that there was the u.s. believes there was russian assistance. -- is saying >> she is just saying it is a complicated technical system. >> like questioning why the ukrainian air-traffic control rather than -- >> i would hardly compare the

two since it was open airspace. >> you're waiting for the final results. for a cabinet member to go out and address the world and say that we can't rule it out is pointing the finger at someone even if you are not 100% sure. you're not saying with 100% certainty. >> we are laying out a range of contextual facts. it is a complicated technical howem and hard to see separatists could do that on their own. she was making a statement of fact. thatid not say individuals fault or that it absolutely is.

there are a range of facts that are publicly available or information we have assessed. she said in her own statement that there will be an investigation. >> it wouldn't even be laying out. >> if you look at what she stated and what her remarks outlined, it is information laying out the context of what we have seen happen on the ground. can we do a few more? it is timing. this happened and i will ask -- if you see any connection, do aboutve any information

how could a passenger plane be mistaken for a military aircraft? >> these are all excellent justions and this happened 24 hours ago so these are questions we don't have definitive answers on. as the secretary makes the calls and the president and everyone else, is it time that europe stood up to food and -- to putin? >> it is important to note that we have been working in lockstep on announcing sanctions. rolling out additional consequences. not as much of this country would have hoped. they have taken a number of steps and there is no question that the economic impact for the economic impact is different

from the impact on the united states. we are talking about dozens of countries that need to agree and work together. but regardless of all of that, we have worked very closely with the europeans who have announced a set of sanctions just this week. if president putin continues to choose escalation over de-escalation, the international community will put consequences in place. >> the turkish prime minister said thedefinitive and russia, theyne by have some intel that we don't? i don't believe there has been a talk with the prime minister.

they spoke a great deal about the events in gaza and they are all coordinating and discussing the events that happened yesterday in the ukraine as well. we are here all day. >> do you consider this an act of terrorism? >> i think we don't know the origin. anytime the loss of innocent lives -- we see a loss of innocent lives, it is a horrific act. i will not put additional labels on it beyond what the president has said. >> is this an act of terrorism? >> do you rule out that it could have been an accident? >> we don't feel this was an accident. heard the president

and ambassador power give definitive remarks on this. but we will see the investigation through. the department stands by those remarks? >> i think there have been remarks that point to that from the president and from ambassador power as well. >> i think that you muddied the waters a little bit here. you do not believe this was an accident. you don't believe that whoever fired dismissal wasn't aiming for something else. you believe that whoever fired dismissal intended to hit and take down a passenger airplane. >> i wasn't stating that. i think i'm not going to go further than i've gone. accident have been an in terms of whoever fired this thing, they thought that they were hitting a military target.

that is a mistake. >> there are a range of ways of defining it. >> but you are not saying that you know or that you believe or civilianrcraft plane was targeted by the people that fired dismissal? >> we don't know more than what has been stated. >> when you say that we don't feel this was an accident, you are expressing a preliminary conclusion. correct? >> that is not my intention. we are participating in the investigation and we are going to let that conclude. relevant, this happened 24 hours ago. accident and mistake are two different things.

feel this we don't was an accident, it is still possible this plane came down because something went wrong with the plane. hasn't been an investigation that has been underway. we are participating in that process and i'm not going to prejudge it e.on that. i don't think i will have much more to add from here today. you say you don't feel this was an accident, you mean that whatever the motive or missile wass shooting at, it was not a malfunction of the plane. is that what you mean by accident? i think we are getting hung up here on something. when you say accident, you mean the engine failed. >> there is no evidence of that to date. i don't have anything more in terms of analyzing what happened here. there is a range that is

relevant. let's begin with the security council meeting at 3:00. there will be a call for an immediate cease-fire. we have support that? certainly seen the reports and i would note that no action requiring a vote has been proposed from this section. we are certainly supportive of diplomatic efforts to end the ongoing violence and our focus is on the egyptian initiative and the role that can play as a moving to a cease-fire, >> bothorward. president obama and john kerry are in conversations with prime minister benjamin netanyahu.

do you feel that although they called for caution, this is really giving the green light to israel to go ahead and strike? would point you to the readout that we issued last night as well as the president's comments. the specific statement the president made is that our is designed to deal with the tunnels. the way that minimizes civilian casualties. i don't think either of them were stating what you just stated. >> 10 days or 14 days, do you support that? or do you support the operation that would go on for about two weeks?

>> own not give a timeline but i think we have been clear that his ground operations are designed to deal with tunnels and events that happened over the past 24 to 36 hours. had a call last night and spoke to them. >> you do not know of anything the united states could be taking? >> our initiative to taking an end to the violence, the briefing of the secretary, israeli prime minister netanyahu , with the egyptian foreign minister our efforts to encourage all countries and parties to work through the egyptian cease-fire. sourcesian government say that the secretary of be heading that way. >> i don't have any travel to announce for all of you. is prepared to go if we

decide that is the right step to take. >> let me ask you again when i asked you yesterday. should any cease-fire proposal closure?gaza under the should that include that? yesterday thatid the secretary's call, this is a point we every underrated. we made clear it is important to take every step possible to reduce civilian casualties. we urge all parties to respect the civilian nature of schools, and certainly our effort and focusing is in order to prevent more civilian death. after doing people a very

the 17ime to evacuate, members, would it have made any difference if you had said they despair at local hospitals? >> our view has consistently been that facilities like hospitals serve as shelters for many. treated as viable and off-limits for military use and targeting by all sides, by both sides. i can't predict for you what would have happened. it is said that the secretary told prime minister netanyahu that the u.s. would like to see israel use precision, the same thing the president said today. the last 22 hours of his ground operation, has the u.s. seen israel using precision to go

after strikes, or do you have concerns that they are not doing notou called for yesterday, doing as much as they possibly could to minimize civilian casualties? reference wast certainly to the death of the four boys that we talked about a little bit yesterday. i don't have an evaluation over the last 18 hours or so since the secretary spoke with prime minister netanyahu. we are encouraging israel and both sides to continue to take as many steps as possible to reduce civilian casualties. i don't know that there will be satisfaction as much as we are encouraging both sides to consider. givem not asking you to them a grade but i wonder if the concerns still exists. if the concerns have been addressed.

>> as long as civilian lives are put at risk, it is a call we will continue to make. yesterday, they put out a statement condemning and apologizing to israel for the fact that some rockets were found in one of their schools. you have any comments or response to that? >> i had not seen that. it may have been a range of events in the last 24 hours. this has been a complaint the israelis have had for some time, which is always denied. officialsing if u.s. or the administration has any thoughts on that. and are you aware of reports , thefamily members

palestinian teenager that was killed and set on fire was the cousin of the american citizen who was beaten up? that they have been detained by israelis and if you are aware, do you have anything to say? >> our conflict enroll has been following this incident closely. we understand several family members were arrested without charges and placed in detention. we were shocked by the treatment and strongly condemned the use of force. we are deeply concerned about we aretest element and closely tracking them on the ground. cause i ask what is the of your deep concern about these detentions? >> the arrest of family members without charges and placing them in detention.

the backdrop here is the treatment of the family members. >> it is possible, is it not? that they have charges to arrest these people? have you made your deep concern clear, directly to the israelis? >> i am happy to check on that. i believe we have. >> it did not come up in the between secretary kerry and prime minister netanyahu. you have any details about when this happened? >> it was over the last couple of days. >> do you have members of the family? >> we can ascertain that together. >> why has the u.s. taken such a

particular interest in this? are any of them americans? is there u.s. -- other than basic human rights, some kind of special american interest? can am not aware but i check on this with a group of questions that any of them are american citizens. obviously we were deeply shocked by the treatment of the family members and we have certainly taken an interest. and certainly, the treatment of family members would be of interest to our team on the ground. >> the interest lies in the fact that these are relatives of the american citizen who was beaten up? or because these are relatives of the palestinian teenager that was killed. >> i don't want to pick one or the other. we have seen the suffering that

this family has gone through. many officials have been able to get to know the family members. >> most palestinians languish, year after year. so why this particular case? >> attica just answer that question. protests ine been front of the consulate and istanbul. did the secretary talk about this issue? is there anyway you can give us details? >> i don't believe i have many more details.

i don't have any additional details on that. >> and today, the prime minister while talking about the situation in gaza said that terror asemploying well as undertaking genocide in gaza. would you agree? >> certainly we believe his statements are offensive and wrong. and this kind of evocative rhetoric is unhelpful. and the tracks from urgent efforts to bring about a cease-fire. >> how many people have to die?

ranges, are definitions, but i don't have more information available. >> does that not constitute genocide? >> it is horrific. dependent on the circumstances that are ongoing. that amounts, does to genocide? >> i am sure we can connect you with an expert on this issue. >> i don't believe you appreciate his line of questioning. back on the prime minister. and, you the strong said, offensive and wrong comments. do you know if anyone from the administration plans to take this up with either him or the prime minister? >> i can check and see if that has already happened or if there

is a plan otherwise. that turkey isme a nato ally. it is a country that the government has some relationship and i am just thatring that if you think the turks, given the comments of haverime minister, forfeited a role to play in potentially negotiating a cease-fire. are showing so much and if their leader is coming out with comments that you find offensive and wrong about your ally, israel? >> our view and what we continue to convey to any country in the region is that the most productive role they can play is supporting the egyptian cease-fire proposal.

when there are concerns about comments made or actions taken, we certainly don't hesitate. usa that these comments mean that turkey or the government of turkey is an obstacle to peace for a cease-fire -- or a cease-fire. i will even as they are unhelpful and there is a role that many countries can play. crusadeso talks about a movement today. a crusader against islam being assembled by the west. does the u.s. late any kind of islam? role against

even sure what that's a reference to her what he meant by those comments. >> according to the prime minister, it is a new crusade. >> that is not an effort the u.s. is undergoing. what israel is doing today -- >> i don't think i have anything more to chad to it. >> with hamas, have they tried to get them to accept a truce? that is what he is discussing

with his counterparts in the region as well as encouraging countries to support the egyptian proposal for a cease-fire. get any joy as to whether they would use that? >> they said that they would try and press thomas >> certainly we think they have a role they could play and we are encouraging them to play that role to the maximal position. next, remarks on the downing of malaysia airlines flight 17. we will hear first from president obama, then from the united nations, including u.s. ambassador samantha power. after that, the pentagon briefing with rear admiral john kirby. president obama says the fbi and the national