‘I think Israel’s best judgment here is simply to proceed militarily to achieve the objective it says it wants, which is the elimination of Hamas.’
Former national security adviser John Bolton on Saturday criticized the Biden administration for its attempts to extend the truce in Gaza, calling them “objectively pro-Hamas.”
“I think with the initial pause now behind us, I think Israel’s best judgment here is simply to proceed militarily to achieve the objective it says it wants, which is the elimination of Hamas,” Mr. Bolton told News Nation.
“I think the second-guessing by the Biden administration, the efforts to prolong the pause to turn it into a full ceasefire, are objectively pro-Hamas because it denies Israel the self-defense right it has to eliminate the terrorist threat.”
Israel’s war with the Hamas terrorist group resumed on Friday after a weeklong truce brokered by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States, during which Hamas freed 110 hostages in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.
A day before the truce ended, Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged for a longer truce on Thursday. He said, “Our immediate focus is working with our partners to extend the pause so that we can continue to get more hostages out of Gaza and more assistance in.”
Also on Friday, the White House blamed Hamas for ending the truce. “It’s because of Hamas that this pause ended,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said, per USA Today.
“They were just simply unable, failed to produce a list of hostages that could help enable that pause extending,” Mr. Kirby added. “The onus is on Hamas to be able to produce a list of hostages that that they can get out so that we can try to get this pause back in place.”
Mr. Bolton criticized President Joe Biden for trying to limit what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can do. The national security adviser had previously criticized the truce as a “very bad deal for Israel.”
By Frank Fang
