Boehler: “We’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel. We have specific interests at play.”
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
Senior Israeli officials expressed shock at the remarks made by Trump’s hostage envoy during a CNN interview in which he insisted that the U.S. was “not an agent of Israel.”
The discussion centered on the controversy surrounding envoy Adam Boehler’s direct talks with Hamas to secure the release of more captives.
Following Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer’s criticism of the policy of direct talks with the terror group, Boehler appeared on CNN to defend the decision, stating, “I understand the consternation and the concern. I wasn’t upset.”
He added, “At the same time, we’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel. We have specific interests at play.”
During a phone call last week, Dermer expressed his dissatisfaction with Boehler’s meeting with a senior Hamas delegation, led by Khalil al-Hayya, in Doha.
Dermer was upset that Boehler discussed the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for one living U.S. citizen and the remains of four deceased American hostages.
Boehler argued that these were only initial talks and emphasized that no agreements would be made without Israel’s approval.
On Wednesday, media outlets reported that U.S. officials were taking the unprecedented step of negotiating directly with Hamas, overturning established U.S. policy of avoiding talks with terror groups.
Jerusalem is displeased with these direct negotiations, particularly because Israeli officials were informed of the talks only after they occurred, contrary to U.S. officials’ claims that Israel had been fully briefed.
The U.S. chose not to inform Israel of the meeting between Trump hostage envoy Adam Boehler and Hamas ahead of time because a similar meeting had previously been canceled due to opposition from Israel.
Boehler proceeded with the meeting, focusing on the need to secure the release of American hostage Eden Alexander and the remains of four deceased U.S. citizens: Omer Neutra, Itay Chen, Gadi Haggai, and Judith Weinstein.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opposed the idea of direct talks between the U.S. and Hamas when proposed by the Trump Administration last month.
According to Ynet, Israel was behind the leak of the direct negotiations between the U.S. and Hamas in an attempt to derail them.
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