‘I hope it’s not true’: former Israeli prime minister
Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett responded on “Sunday Night in America” to reports that the Biden administration is considering making ammunition aid conditional on Israeli actions in Gaza.
Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett spoke on “Sunday Night in America” about the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas and concerns about U.S. involvement and rising anti-Semitism.
Bennett assured Fox News host Trey Gowdy that Israel will continue to attack as long as Hamas holds hostages.
“You can say that Hamas is dedicated to destroying and annihilating Israel. They say it clearly. They will try to kill Jews as long as they exist and are on their borders. We’re saying we’re going to continue. So we really don’t have a choice,”’ Bennett said.
Bennett also cited recent statements by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi calling for regime change in Israel. He emphasized the importance of Israel’s democratic process and contrasted it with Iran and other undemocratic regimes across the Middle East.
Schumer criticizes ‘disgusting’ speech calling on Israel to remove Netanyahu: ‘highly inappropriate’
Anti-Israel demonstrators rally outside the New York University campus on Friday, May 3, 2024, in New York. Campus protests have entered their third week as tensions rise across the United States. (Rashid Umar Abbasi, Fox News Digital)
“Israel is a vibrant democracy, and within Israel we speak out against it, we speak out in support of it, we all speak out for whatever we want, and we speak out for guidance. It’s up to the people of Israel to choose who they want to be. Israel is a democracy,” Bennett said. “Other places you mentioned, like Iran and other places, are not necessarily democracies, and it makes sense to change the regime there.”
Experts say Biden’s plan to impose Lee Act sanctions against IDF was ‘political’: ‘Congress should consider investigating’
Concerns have also been raised about US involvement in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, particularly with reports that the Biden administration is conditioning ammunition support on Israeli actions in Gaza.
The Biden administration last week put a hold on shipments of U.S. munitions to Israel for the first time since the deadly Oct. 7 terrorist attack by Hamas, according to Axios.
“I hope it’s not true. I heard the rumors. I hope it’s not true, because we’re on the front lines of not just Israel’s war, but the fight against Islamic extremism. It is a battle against Islamic extremists and extremists who are attacking Israelis in Gaza. European Muslims are attacking Europeans, and American laws are being applied to Islamic religious law, Sharia law, on American campuses. A radical Islam that clearly wants to change,” Bennett said.
“So we have to push back this whole wave. And we know it’s us who are fighting and it’s our mission to do that. What we’re hoping for is… , our friends have our backs.”
Columbia University graduates call for school safety to be restored and ‘zero tolerance for anti-Semitism’ to be enforced
Bennett referenced college students who have engaged in anti-Semitic behavior at American universities and expressed hope that their actions stemmed from naivety rather than malice.
“I hope this is the naivety of college students. They’re so on the wrong side. And maybe in a few years, when they grow up, they — at least some of them –You’ll realize how stupid that was.” What they’re doing is fighting the only democracy in the Middle East, liberal democracy. ”
He added: “All I can say is that it’s unfortunate. In the future they will realize how wrong this approach was.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
