The world should not expect a hostage deal if the Qataris remain the lead negotiators, according to Jonathan Schanzer, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
“We know that the Qataris are state sponsors of terrorism, as it relates to Hamas,” Schanzer said — and not just Hamas, but also the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and ISIS. “This is an extremist regime that has somehow insinuated itself with some of the top folks in the U.S. government. They trust the Qataris. They really should not trust the Qataris, because at the end of the day, this is a regime that was spending $30 million a month to keep the Hamas terrorist organization intact.”
Schanzer said Qatar was financing Hamas right up until the October 7 attacks and that top Hamas leaders continue to live and thrive in Doha. He said the Qatari government “is doing whatever it can” to ensure Hamas remains in power.
“What we need right now is somebody to negotiate the release of every last hostage,” he said. “All 50 hostages should be released in one fell swoop, and then from there, you could begin to talk about the exile of Hamas leadership from the Gaza Strip. That's how you get to calm in the region. Anything short of that, to me, strikes me as just woefully inadequate.”
Watch the full interview:
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(ILTV)
