August 20, 2026 - WASHINGTON – On Wednesday, Representative Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03) led Reps. Mike Quigley (IL-05), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Nikema Williams (GA-05), Danny Davis (IL-07), and Emily Randall (WA-06) in sending a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth demanding answers about the operational ruse executed during President Trump’s departure from the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey on July 8, 2026.

In their letter, the lawmakers write, “This operation represents an unprecedented and unacceptable breach of ethical military conduct and a stunning lack of care for the lives of everyday government employees and unwitting American journalists aboard that plane. To intentionally place civilians in harm’s way as human decoys to draw potential enemy fire appears to be a grave ethical violation and undermines foundational principles of U.S. military law.”

They further state, “Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and the U.S. Department of Defense Law of War Manual, military commanders and civilian leadership are strictly prohibited from using civilians or non-combatants to shield military objectives or facilitating tactical deceptions that endanger non-combatant lives — even if it is to protect the president.”

The letter is endorsed by the Committee to Protect Journalists, Win Without War, Common Defense, MoveOn, and the Center for International Policy Advocacy.

“The Trump administration has a responsibility to ensure that journalists covering the president are not needlessly exposed to danger. Transparency should be the norm for any administration, especially when safety is at stake,” said José Zamora, CPJ’s Regional Director for the Americas.

“Sacrificing people as decoys without their knowledge or consent raises troubling questions about the ways the Trump administration is willing to gamble with our safety and security,” said Shayna Lewis, Deputy Director at Win Without War. “July’s operational ruse is merely the latest scandal that requires accountability, and Congress must demand answers.”

“Trump’s total disregard for the life and well-being of anyone but himself isn’t just a stunning character flaw, it’s a critical security risk. U.S. servicemembers, reporters and all Americans have a right to know who helped him devise and execute this cowardly plan,” said Dylan Williams, Vice President for Government Affairs at Center for International Policy Advocacy.

"Much like the vast majority of Americans who never asked for President Trump’s war, the civilians and journalists on board Air Force One did not agree to be used as pawns or human shields. The Department of War’s reliance on increasingly unauthorized military operations appears to have become its standard operating procedure. With 18 service members and thousands of civilian casualties already, the administration has an obligation to provide answers and to follow strict protocols to prevent additional lives from being endangered,” said MoveOn Civic Action Chief of Program Sara Haghdoosti.

“I spent twelve months in Iraq. I know what it means to accept risk in uniform because that's the job. What I don't accept is civilians, journalists, and government staff being used as an unwitting decoy so nobody has to say out loud that the threat was real. Congress and the American people deserve a straight answer on who made that call, whether anyone in that chain even asked if it was legal, and why the people on that plane were the last to know their own lives were on the line. Secretary Hegseth owes them that answer,” said Naveed A. Shah, Political Director at Common Defense.

Read the letter HERE and below.

Dear Secretary Hegseth,

We are writing with extreme concern regarding recent reports about the operational ruse executed during President Trump’s departure from the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey on July 8, 2026.

According to published reports and statements from administration officials, a possible threat of an Iranian missile attack prompted a deception operation in which President Trump was secretly evacuated from the primary presidential aircraft via a catering truck and instead flown out of the country on an Air Force C-32A. Meanwhile, the legacy Air Force One aircraft — carrying White House civilian personnel, military support staff, members of the press — was ordered to depart with window shades drawn, effectively using innocent civilians as an unannounced target decoy without their knowledge or consent.

This operation represents an unprecedented and unacceptable breach of ethical military conduct and a stunning lack of care for the lives of everyday government employees and unwitting American journalists aboard that plane. To intentionally place civilians in harm’s way as human decoys to draw potential enemy fire appears to be a grave ethical violation and undermines foundational principles of U.S. military law.

Under the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) and the U.S. Department of Defense Law of War Manual, military commanders and civilian leadership are strictly prohibited from using civilians or non-combatants to shield military objectives or facilitating tactical deceptions that endanger non-combatant lives — even if it is to protect the president. The American public and Congress deserve immediate answers about this mission, including who authorized it and why civilian lives were intentionally or inadvertently placed at risk.

Therefore, we demand that the Department of War provide written responses to the following questions:

1. Who specifically authorized the decision to allow the legacy Air Force One aircraft to take off with civilian staff and press pool members onboard while knowing the aircraft was a potential target for an enemy missile attack and without alerting them to this fact?

2. What was your specific operational role as Secretary of War in planning, approving, or executing this deception operation?

3. Was a formal risk assessment or Department of War legal review conducted prior to execution regarding the legality and ethical standard of using unwitting civilian non-combatants as a decoy?

   1. If so, who authored the legal justification?

4. What protocols exist within the Department of Defense to protect non-combatant passengers during high-threat presidential transport operations, and why were those protocols disregarded or overridden in this instance?

5. What corrective directives have you subsequently issued to ensure that civilian non-combatants will not again be deployed as unwitting decoys in tactical deception maneuvers?

Members of the press and civil servants serve our nation in crucial and often thankless positions; they do not sign up to be human shields for any president and to have your department treat their lives as expendable. We expect a prompt, comprehensive response and full transparency on this critical matter by September 2, 2026.

Yassamin Ansari

Member of Congress

Source: Representative Yassamin Ansari