‘Hamas has to go,’ says US envoy, pledging terror group will be removed

The US ambassador to the United Nations vows that Hamas will be removed one way or another, adding that the cycle of violence between Gaza and Israel must be ended.

By World Israel News Staff

The US Ambassador to the United Nations reassured Israel that the Trump administration will not permit Hamas to continue to operate within the Gaza Strip following the second phase of the 20-point peace plan, vowing that the terror group will be removed either by disarmament or through force.

On Wednesday, Ambassador Mike Waltz met with President Isaac Herzog at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem, during which the two leaders discussed efforts to return the body of the final hostage held in Gaza, Ran Gvili, and the second phase of the Gaza peace plan.

Herzog lauded the Trump administration for helping to secure the return of the hostages from Gaza, while warning that without a clear path forward, Hamas and other terrorist groups could use the ceasefire to regroup.

“We hope that the process will not take too long, because in the Middle East, if you wait for too long, then the vacuum fills in, and the rogue elements don’t rest for a moment,” Herzog said.

Waltz emphasized that President Donald Trump is committed to removing Hamas from power in Gaza – by force if necessary – and said that under no circumstances would the terror group be allowed to reassert control over Gaza following reconstruction of the Strip.

“What has been clear, and I want to be clear, is Hamas has to go,” Waltz told Herzog. “President Trump has been clear, that’s going to happen the easy way or the hard way, but there will not be any more Hamas.”

“And what we cannot do, what we’re determined to avoid, is what I call the definition of insanity: somehow Hamas is allowed to survive, they rebuild, the international community pours billions into reconstruction, Hamas attacks again, and Israel has no choice but to respond, and here we are in this cycle of insanity. The President, his team, is determined to break that, and one of the many reasons I’m here is to see that implemented.”