Tag: Trump

Israeli oppositionists have been gloating over a preview of an upcoming interview on CBS’s “60 Minutes” with U. S. President Donald Trump’s Mideast envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner-two key architects of the Gaza hostage-release-ceasefire deal. The interview, to be aired in full on Sunday evening (early Monday morning, Israel time) was conducted by Lesley Stahl. Asked about Israel’s Sept. 9 surprise strike on Hamas leaders in Qatar, Witkoff replied, “We woke up the next morning to find out that there had been this attack.” Stahl rolled her exaggerated deer-in-the-headlight eyes heavenward. “Wow,” she said. Witkoff continued, “And, of course, I was called by the president.” “You had no idea, obviously,” Stahl responded. “None whatsoever,” he retorted, adding, “You know, I think both Jared and I felt, I just feel we felt a little bit betrayed.” Stahl went on to say she’d heard that Trump “was furious.” Kushner responded, “I think he felt like the Israelis were getting a little bit out of control in what they were doing, and that it was time to be very strong and stop them from doing things that he felt were not in their long-term interests.” Stahl: “People should understand that [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, the Israelis, bombed the peacemakers. Bombed the negotiating team.” Really? People should understand that? Rather than call out this outrageous assertion and outright lie-since the strike was aimed specifically at Hamas leaders supported, funded and coddled by those very “negotiators”-Witkoff, nodding, took it a step further. “By the way, Lesley, it had a metastasizing effect, because the Qataris were critical to the negotiation, as were the Egyptians and the Turks. And we had lost the confidence of the Qataris. And, so, Hamas went underground, and it was very, very difficult to get to them.”.