MK Simcha Rothman spoke to Arutz Sheva regarding Israel’s recent decision to suspend humanitarian aid to Gaza and the country’s position on the ongoing situation between the US and Ukraine.
Rothman expressed his hope that this halt in aid will force a realization of US President Donald Trump’s warning to “open the gates of Hell” on Hamas if the hostages are not released. “I think that’s the way to go. I was against the deal, to begin with, but we had 42 days of the deal, we are happy about every hostage who came back, but the only way to get all the hostages back is to adopt Trump’s original plan to give Hamas an ultimatum.” He further remarked that “stopping the humanitarian aid that was forced on Israel by the Biden administration and other players is the first step towards adopting President Trump’s plan.”
When asked about the recent proposal for an extension to the ceasefire by White House Middle East envoy Steven Witkoff, which Israel has agreed to, Rothman described the plan as “a middle ground between the first plan of stage two, and President Trump’s plan. But as we see, Hamas said no to Witkoff’s plan. Israel said yes because Israel, above everything else, puts the lives of the hostages at a very high level of importance. That’s the way we are, that’s part of our Jewish heritage. I personally think that the only way to get the hostages back is Trump’s original plan, and not any ‘halfways.'”
Rothman also spoke on the topic of the relationship between the US and Ukraine, particularly addressing the ongoing confrontation between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. While he emphasized that he does not wish to meddle in US-Ukraine affairs, Rothman remarked, “I don’t see any reason for the State of Israel to take any position, especially when Zelenskyy bad-mouthed Israel, said Israel should stop fighting Hamas, said that he supports a two-state solution, basically taking pieces of land from Israel. I think Israel should not take a stand, definitely not between Ukraine and the US, but even between Ukraine and Russia. When Ukraine starts voting for the State of Israel, supporting Israel’s views in the international arena, we would have to consider President Zelenskyy as a friend. Currently, we are only getting attacked by Zelenskyy and Ukraine, so we shouldn’t take sides on this matter.”
{Matzav.com}