Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, President Donald Trump's nominee to serve as ambassador to Israel, told Newsmax on Friday that Israel must "continue the complete annihilation of Hamas" and refuse to abide by the ceasefire agreement set out earlier this year.
Huckabee said on "National Report" that Israel doesn't "have a choice" when asked about the country's decision not to withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor, the border between Egypt and Gaza, which was one of the terms of the ceasefire with Hamas.
Israel also recently refused to release over 600 Palestinian hostages as part of a prisoner exchange for six Israeli hostages being held by Hamas, citing "Hamas' repeated violations — including the disgraceful ceremonies that dishonor our hostages and the cynical use of hostages for propaganda."
"There is no negotiation with Hamas that represents anything of honor, decency, and trustworthiness," Huckabee said. "They just are not capable of that. They've made it very clear even in recent days that their goal is still the same, to kill Jews and to annihilate Israel. So they haven't changed anything. They just want to have Israel back off and let them have time to rearm, regroup, and do more mayhem.
"So the fact that the [Israeli Defense Force] and the state of Israel is going to continue to prosecute the war against Hamas should be no surprise to anyone."
Huckabee said it would be "an outright shock and, frankly, stunning if Israel" agrees to a ceasefire that allows Hamas to exist.
"It would be a bigger surprise and an outright shock and, frankly, stunning if Israel said, "Yeah, we're just going to walk away and let Hamas get their arms back and heck, come back at us again,' which they've pledged to do."
Huckabee added: "There's no choice here. Israel must continue the complete annihilation of Hamas because Hamas has its goal as the total annihilation of Israel."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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