US officials confused over gender of hero dog involved in Baghdadi raid

There has been a lot of confusion over the gender of the star military dog who helped in the United States special forces raid that killed Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The federal officials continuously flip-flopped on the question even after US President Donald Trump showed off the military dog, Conan, at a news conference in the White House Rose Garden.

Going back and forth

US officials first told reporters that the hero was, in fact, a girl, but an American daily got confirmation from the Pentagon, in writing, that Conan is a male dog as per the US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). Earlier, a White House official also told reporters that Conan was a girl but after Trump and Vice President Mike Pence used male pronouns to refer the dog, officials confirmed Conan’s gender as male.

Read: Donald Trump 'declassifies' Name Of Dog Who Helped Take Down Baghdadi

On October 27, during a media briefing at the White House, Trump called the dog talented and beautiful. “K-9, as they call - I call it a dog, a beautiful dog, a talented dog - was injured and brought back”. Speculations were rife after the media briefing about the gender of the dog as Trump didn’t mention Conan as he/him or she/her.

Read: Donald Trump Tweets Fake Photo Of Hero Dog Getting Medal Of Honor

Settles on male

Susan Hennessey, a Brookings Institution fellow in national security law, found the story silly but questioned the ability of the White House to provide credible information on a verifiable fact. "It is an example of the complete and total inability to get clear, credible information regarding an innocuous and verifiable fact from the White House and DOD. That is something that actually matters," tweeted Susan.

As per the latest update from the White House and US defence officials, they have, for now, settled on the dog's gender as male and a broadcast journalist took to Twitter to inform that one official 'triple checked'.

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