Adam Boehler, President Donald Trump’s special envoy for hostages, issued a statement on Sunday to clarify remarks he made during an interview with CNN, where he was criticized for describing the Hamas leaders he engaged with as “a bunch of nice guys.”
“I want to be CRYSTAL CLEAR as some have misinterpreted. Hamas is a terrorist organization that has murdered thousands of innocent people. They are BY DEFINITION BAD people. And as President Trump has said, not a single Hamas member will be safe if Hamas doesn’t RELEASE ALL HOSTAGES IMMEDIATELY,” Boehler posted on X.
In the Sunday interview with Jake Tapper, Boehler addressed his direct interactions with Hamas leaders, saying, “We’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel.”
When asked about his experience as a Jewish American sitting down with “antisemitic murderers,” Boehler emphasized the necessity of engaging with difficult figures for the sake of diplomacy. “My job requires me to have dialogue with anybody, and that includes a lot of people that I would classify as not so good people, to help other Americans,” he explained.
Boehler also acknowledged Israel’s potential frustration with his discussions, revealing that he had spoken with Israel’s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer about the secret talks. According to an Axios report, Israel voiced strong concerns over these clandestine negotiations, leading to a tense conversation between Boehler and Dermer.
“I spoke with Ron, and I’m sympathetic. He has someone that he doesn’t know well, making direct contact with Hamas. Maybe I would see them and say, ‘Look, they don’t have horns growing out of their head. They’re actually guys like us. They’re pretty nice guys,’” Boehler commented during the CNN interview.
Among the critics of Boehler’s remarks was David Friedman, the former U.S. Ambassador to Israel.
“This past week, President Trump brilliantly presented Hamas with a binary choice: release all the hostages and surrender, or be destroyed. It is the only path to ending the war,” Friedman noted.
He continued, “If I heard Adam Boehler correctly on the Sunday news shows, he took the unprecedented step to meet with Hamas to consider a third way — whether a deal could be struck where Hamas ‘would not be involved’ in governing Gaza.”
“A deal with Hamas is a waste of time and will never be kept. Attempting one is beneath the dignity of the United States. Adam, I know you mean well but listen to your boss. The choice must remain binary,” Friedman concluded.
The post After Backlash, Trump’s Envoy Clarifies: Hamas Are By Definition Bad People first appeared on Matzav.com.