Former President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed that the Hamas terror attacks on Israel, as well as the resulting war, would "never have happened" if he were still the president and that they took place because the terror group has "no respect" for President Joe Biden.
"Iran was broke," Trump claimed in an early-morning interview, reports The Times of Israel. "They have no money for Hamas, for Hezbollah. They were broke. They wouldn't have done it to me."
He also said during the interview, given to Fox News, that he believes Biden is in the process of "abandoning" Israel, and claimed that Russia would not have attacked Ukraine if he, rather than Biden, had been in the White House.
“It's the fascists and the communists [who] surround him," Trump said. "They're making the calls."
However, Trump didn't directly dismiss Vice President Kamala Harris' call for a temporary cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, instead insisting that the Oct. 7 attack and Israel's counterattack "would never have happened if I was president."
"All these people that are dead in Ukraine and Russia and Israel, all these areas that are destroyed — people would be leading great lives right now," he added. "We're going to end up in World War III."
Trump has made similar claims about Israel and Ukraine, including after he won the Iowa caucuses when he said that if he wins the general election in November he would solve the wars "very fast."
Trump also commented, when he was asked if he supports the Israel Defense Forces' efforts in Gaza, "You've got to finish the problem [because] you had a horrible invasion [that] took place."
The Times noted that just after the Oct. 7 attacks, Trump criticized Israel's government for not anticipating the strikes, calling Defense Minister Yoav Gallant a "jerk" and praising the Lebanese Hezbollah as being "very smart."
Meanwhile, Trump had a record of support for Israel while president, including recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and opening a U.S. Embassy there. His administration also brokered the Abraham Accords, with Israel reaching normalization agreements with Morocco, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain.
There was also an effort under way with Biden for Saudi Arabia and Israel to normalize relations under the accords and said an agreement was close before the Oct. 7 attacks.
The administration says it still wants to reach an agreement, potentially as part of a larger initiative to end the Israel-Hamas war, establish a pathway for a Palestinian state, and further integrate Israel in the region.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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