Nikki Haley meets with victims of Hamas at the Gaza border
Former presidential hopeful Nikki Haley consoled an Israeli community that had been ravaged by the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack, during a Memorial Day trip she made to the Israel-Gaza border.
Haley, 52, assured citizens of the Middle East ally that the US remains committed to supporting Israel despite the spate of anti-Israel protests that have swept the country.
“What I will tell all Israelis: America is with you. Americans are with you — 1,200 people were brutally murdered. Let’s not forget what happened on Oct. 7,” she said in a video posted on X by Danny Danon, a Likud member of the Knesset, who accompanied Haley on her trip.
“Because Hamas has said they’re going to do it again. We owe it to make sure it never happens again,” Haley contined.
Danon heaped praise on Haley for her record on Israel, hailing her as a “sincere advocate for the Jewish people.”
“It is with the greatest pleasure that I extend a warm welcome to our esteemed friend, Ambassador Nikki Haley, as she arrives in Israel,” Danon posted on X.
Haley served as former President Donald Trump’s US ambassador to the United Nations from 2017 to late 2018, during which she underscored her support for Israel and feuded with critics of the Jewish state.
Her visit included a tour of the Kibbutz Nir Oz, which was brutally targetted by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, during the “Nova” music festival.
She spoke to nearby survivors who recounted painful and emotional accounts of what transpired on that day.
Footage showed her appearing to wipe tears away from her eyes as she heard harrowing tales from some of the survivors.
Haley called for the elimination of Hamas and the release of the remaining hostages held captive by the terrorist organization.
At one point, Haley pinned the blame for the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre on Russia, China, and Iran while stressing the intricate planning behind Hamas’ bloody onslaught.
“China’s been funding Iran the entire time. Russia’s intelligence helped them know where everything was. Iran helped get them trained. So this isn’t Hamas,” she said.
“If we really mean it’s never going to happen again, we have to be honest and truthful with ourselves who did this.”
Haley did not provide proof that China and Russia were directly linked to the attack. However, both countries are known to support Iran, which backs Hamas.
She also took a not-so-subtle jab at President Biden, chiding that “the sure way to not help Israel is to withhold weapons,” referring to the pause on shipments of heavy bombs to Israel amid a standoff over Rafah, according to the Times of Israel.
Haley was the last major contender left standing against Trump, 77, in the 2024 GOP primaries for the presidency.
Months after she dropped out of the race, she managed to earn the votes of tens of thousands in the Republican primary.
Last week, Haley declared that she intended to vote for Trump in the Nov. 5 presidential election. Trump, in turn, later said that he believes she will be “on our team in some form.”
