US Deputy Special Envoy to the Middle East Morgan Ortagus and a bipartisan delegation of senators met on Monday with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar to discuss the Iranian nuclear threat and Tehran’s increased efforts to send funds to Lebanon’s Hezbollah terrorist army.
The meeting, which took place in Jerusalem, included Ortagus and the delegation, headed by Senators Lindsey Graham and Dan Sullivan and included Senators Sheldon Whitehouse, Richard Blumenthal, Joni Ernst, Adam Schiff, and Andy Kim.
The delegation’s visit coincided with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s trip to the region. Rubio arrived in Saudi Arabia Monday morning after a whirlwind visit to Israel over the weekend.
White House National Security Adviser Mike Waltz told Fox News in an interview this weekend that President Donald Trump is completely committed to ensuring Iran never achieves a nuclear breakout.
“I can speak to what the president has repeatedly stated: Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. That would not only be existential for Israel but also for the entire world, as it could trigger a nuclear arms race in the Middle East,” Waltz said.
During his talks with the senators and deputy envoy, Sa’ar nevertheless raised the issue of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
“There are troubling developments regarding Iran’s nuclear program, stemming from Iran’s desire to ‘compensate’ for its weakened regional power in the war by achieving nuclear weapons,” Sa’ar told the US officials.
“There is an increased Iranian effort to smuggle money to Lebanon for Hezbollah in order to restore its power and status in Lebanon, including via Turkey and through its cooperation,” he added.
“Rehabilitating Hezbollah will harm Lebanon’s chances for a different and better future, as well as the Lebanese army’s ability to be the dominant military force in the country. Therefore, it must be stopped,” Sa’ar emphasized.
The foreign minister also warned that any Palestinian state will become a Hamas state that would endanger Israel — a point emphasized earlier in the day by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“Just as I have committed to on the day after the war in Gaza, there will be neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority,” Netanyahu said in a statement issued by his office. “I am committed to US President Trump’s plan for the creation of a different Gaza.”
An existential threat to Israel would be present not only in Palestinian Authority-controlled areas of Judea and Samaria, but also in Gaza if regional forces were to succeed in forcing Israel to accept a Palestinian Authority government in the enclave.
The October 7th invasion and massacre in southern Israel made clear the importance for Israel to reject foreign sovereignty and armed forces west of the Jordan River, Sa’ar noted.
The minister also warned against a US withdrawal from Syria due to the ongoing fight against ISIS and the new situation in the country, particularly attempts to undermine Kurdish autonomy.
‘Number One Priority: Get the Hostages Out’
The senators also toured the Museum of Tolerance in Jerusalem and met with hostage families and a mother who lost two daughters at the Nova Festival in Re’im on October 7th.
“The number one priority of the US government — Democrat and Republican — is to get [the hostages] out, to help your government negotiate for their release, every last one of them,” said Graham, one of Israel’s strongest allies in the US Senate.
“I appreciate President Trump being strong on this, as well as the prime minister of Israel. This is your policy, this is our policy — Democrats and Republicans alike — to push for the release of every last hostage. We will do our best,” he promised.
“Here I am, in Israel, 500 days after the second largest loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust. Evil must be confronted, deterred, and destroyed; it will always return if we are not vigilant,” Graham said.
