U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned Hamas in a radio interview on Monday, calling them "monstrous" and "pure evil" while discussing the condition of three recently released Israeli hostages — Ohad Ben Ami, Eliyahu Sharabi and Or Levy.
"I don’t think there’s any coincidence in the schedule that they’re being released where they obviously released the ones they thought were in the best condition first, then over time you’re starting to see the impact of this," Rubio said.
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Eliyahu Sharabi, Or Levy and Ohad Ben Ami reuniting with their families
(Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit, Haim Tzach/GPO)
"It’s incredibly revealing about what we’re dealing with. This is an evil organization. Hamas is evil. It’s pure evil. These are monsters. These are savages. That’s a group that needs to be eradicated,” he added.
Referring to the treatment of the hostages, Rubio said, "You look at these images of what they – first of all, the humiliation that they have to go through. Just put aside for a moment the horrifying conditions they were kept and the horrifying things that happened to some of those hostages, on top of the fact that these were innocent civilians.
“I mean, none of these were soldiers. These are not combatants. These are just people that were abducted for purposes of being used as leverage. And they’re getting, what, 200 certified killers in exchange for one innocent hostage.”
Rubio also pointed out the disparity between Hamas terrorists and the suffering in Gaza. "Do any of those Hamas fighters look like they’ve been skipping meals? Do any of those Hamas fighters that you see look like they’ve been suffering over the last year and a half? Clearly, these people are – the ones suffering are the people from Gaza, but not them," he said. "If they still are the dominant power in Gaza when all this is done, there is not going to peace in the Middle East."
Call for regional involvement in Gaza's reconstruction
Rubio addressed U.S. plans for post-war Gaza and urged regional countries to participate. " Gaza is a place that, in addition to all the damage it suffered in the war – Hamas hides in the tunnels. It’s the civilians who they hide behind and underneath that have suffered the consequences of this," he said.
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"But that’s a place where there’s all kinds of unexploded munitions and bombs that Hamas has, that’s been used in the conflict. Someone’s got to go in – for anybody to be able to live there, someone’s got to – you’ve got to clean it up. You’ve got to clean all that out of there even before you begin the process of removing rubble and debris and rebuilding housing, like permanent structures. Who’s going to do that?”
He noted that U.S. President Donald Trump is the only leader so far who has committed to assisting in the endeavor. "All these other leaders, they’re going to have to step up. If they’ve got a better idea, then now is the time. Now is the time for the other governments and other powers in the region, some of these very rich countries, to basically say, okay, we’ll do it. But we’re still waiting for more countries to step forward and say here’s what we’re willing to do. And right now, they’ve not been willing to do anything and – or at least anything concrete.”
Opposition to a Palestinian state under Hamas or Hezbollah
Speaking on the two-state solution, Rubio stressed that the issue is not Israel, but governance in Gaza. "The big challenge for this whole two-state solution has not been Israel. It’s been: Who’s going to govern that second state? Who’s going to be in charge of it? If the people in charge of it are Hamas or Hizballah or anybody like that, these are groups that – whose goal is the destruction of the Jewish state." he said.
"Why would any country in the world agree to create a second state on their border that is governed by armed elements who kidnap babies and murder babies and rape teenage girls and abduct innocents and whose stated goal and purpose for existing is your destruction?”
Rubio reiterated Trump's vision for expanding peace agreements in the Middle East: " Imagine a region where Israel now feels secure because of what’s happened in Lebanon and in Syria that they can enter into a peace deal with Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf kingdoms; a Sunni-Israeli peace deal akin to the Camp David Accords with Egypt and the peace with Jordan. President Trump has made very clear that part of his agenda is promoting peace in the world.”