President Donald Trump says his ousted National Security Adviser Michael Flynn is a "wonderful man" who has been treated "very, very unfairly" by the media.
Flynn resigned late on Monday following reports that he had discussed sanctions with the Russian ambassador to the US before Trump was sworn into office.
Flynn and other administration officials originally denied the topic had been discussed. White House spokesman Sean Spicer said on Tuesday that Flynn had lost the president's trust.
But Trump says in a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he thinks "it's really a sad thing" that Flynn "was treated so badly".
He's also going after those who have leaked information to the press, describing it as a "criminal act".