Photo: Cherie A. Thurlby/U.S. Dept. Defense

Former spy chief, Omar Suleiman (file photo).

Excerpt from the United States Department of State daily press briefing:

QUESTION: Can you say when and under what conditions Omar Suleiman entered the United States?

MR. VENTRELL: I cannot. I don't have further information for you, Brad. I - we have seen the reports that General Omar Suleiman, the former director of the Egypt intelligence services and former vice president of Egypt died --

QUESTION: Here.

MR. VENTRELL: -- overnight in the United States. He was a long-time partner of the United States in protecting Egypt and maintaining Middle East peace and security, and we send our condolences to his friends and family.

QUESTION: So you didn't know - this Department didn't know that he was in the United States?

MR. VENTRELL: I really don't have further information for you. Obviously, for privacy concerns, an individual - a private individual's travel is not necessarily something that we're able to talk about.

QUESTION: He's dead now.

MR. VENTRELL: I'll look into more information. At this point, I don't have anything for you, Brad.

QUESTION: Was he on any no-fly list to --

MR. VENTRELL: Again, I have no further information about his actual travel to the United States.

QUESTION: Do you know --

QUESTION: Can you take the question, please?

MR. VENTRELL: We can look into it afterward.

QUESTION: Do you know which agency would?

MR. VENTRELL: I mean, again, I'd --

QUESTION: Presumably, if he entered the country DHS would - should have known about it. And presumably his long-time partner, the building across the river, would have known and gotten him to Cleveland - presumably to the Cleveland clinic, where he died. It just strikes me as being a little bit unusual, considering this is the guy who you guys dealt with for so many years, that - this building as well as the intel community - that you wouldn't know.

MR. VENTRELL: Well, Matt, suffice it to say that a number of different U.S. agencies have responsibility for border security and for our travel arrangements, whether DHS or State and others. And so I'm looking into it. I just don't have - I didn't have information when I came down.

Anything else?

QUESTION: Very quickly --

MR. VENTRELL: Said.

QUESTION: -- anything new or any new development in terms of what may have transpired since yesterday in terms of this Department's response to Congresswoman Michele Bachmann's accusation of Ms. Huma Abedin?

MR. VENTRELL: As I said yesterday, we find those allegations preposterous, and we continue to think so.

QUESTION: Were you able to get an answer from the IG? Are they actually going to look into this?

MR. VENTRELL: I have not yet, but I'll continue to inquire.

QUESTION: Thank you.

MR. VENTRELL: Thank you, all.

(The briefing was concluded at 1:39 p.m.)