Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be ambassador to Israel, has long rejected a Palestinian state in territory previously seized by Israel and has repeatedly signaled his staunch support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Huckabee, a former TV host and Baptist preacher, frequently visits Israel and once said he wanted to buy a holiday home there. He has maintained throughout the years that the West Bank belongs to Israel, and recently said “the title deed was given by God to Abraham and to his heirs.”
His argument for a so-called “one-state solution” contradicts longstanding official US support for the eventual establishment of a Palestinian state.
He has described the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas as “horrific” and ” beyond anything I’ve ever witnessed in my lifetime” and argued that the US needs to stand firmly behind Israel.
Here are some things Huckabee has said over the years about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
He is decisively against a two-state solution
Huckabee has never supported a two-state compromise even when Netanyahu endorsed the idea in 2009.
Israel captured the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war. Palestinians want those territories for a future state and view them as parts of a single country now under military occupation.
The US, along with most of the international community, has supported the establishment of a Palestinian state based on the 1967 lines as the cornerstone of a peace agreement. Even Israel’s hard-line prime minister once endorsed a two-state solution while rejecting a return to Israel’s pre-1967 lines. Netanyahu now rejects the creation of a Palestinian state.
Huckabee has never supported any solution that would require Israeli settlers to be uprooted.
In an interview with The Associated Press in 2015, Huckabee, then running for the GOP presidential nomination, said recognizing the West Bank as Israeli would be the “formal position” of his administration. He criticized Israel’s 2005 withdrawal from Gaza and described settlers evacuated by Israeli forces as having been “marched at gunpoint.”
“I feel that we have a responsibility to respect that this is land that has historically belonged to the Jews,” he said.
He once compared the Iran nuclear deal to the Holocaust
In 2015, Huckabee likened the Iran nuclear deal to marching Israelis “to the door of the oven,” a reference to the crematorium in a Nazi concentration camp during the Holocaust.
Huckabee was criticizing then-President Barack Obama for his role in the agreement the US and other world powers reached with Tehran. Republicans back then were united in their opposition to the deal, arguing it didn’t address Iran’s support for terrorism. Trump during his first administration withdrew from the deal, in which Iran agreed to limit its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
The comment was denounced by Democrats, but Huckabee stood by it.
He doesn’t accept Palestinians as a term and criticizes ‘radical Muslims’
In a recent interview with a podcaster, Huckabee said he did not believe in referring to the Arab descendants of people who lived in British-controlled Palestine as “Palestinians.”
“There really isn’t such a thing,” he said earlier this year on “Think Twice” with Jonathan Tobin. “It’s a term that was co-opted by Yasser Arafat in 1962,” referring to one of the early leaders of the Palestine Liberation Organization.
During the same podcast, Huckabee described himself as an “unapologetic, unreformed Zionist.”
In defending Israel, Huckabee said he wished people understood that “this is an extraordinary oasis in a land of totalitarianism surrounded by tyranny.”
The former governor also said many “radical Muslims want to take us back to the seventh century.”
“I don’t want to go back there,” he said. “I like modernity.”
He expresses outrage over Oct. 7 attack by Hamas
Huckabee has described the attack on Oct. 7, 2023, as “horrific” and “beyond anything I’ve ever witnessed in my lifetime.” He was outraged by how Hamas spread images of the killings on social media.
“As horrible as the Nazis were, they weren’t posting their atrocities on social media and trying to trumpet what they were doing to the world,” he said in an appearance with the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. “Which is what makes this horrendous thing Hamas has done so much, to me, worse, because they want everyone to see what they’ve done.”
Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 250 people hostage. Israel responded with one of the deadliest and most destructive military campaigns in recent history, killing more than 43,000 people, Palestinian health officials say.
Mike Huckabee, Trump’s pick for ambassador to Israel, has long called himself a Zionist
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Mike Huckabee, Trump’s pick for ambassador to Israel, has long called himself a Zionist
- Huckabee has never supported a two-state compromise even when Netanyahu endorsed the idea in 2009
South Korea, China, Japan to strengthen regional trade as Trump tariffs loom
- South Korean, Japanese economies rely on auto exports to the US
- East Asian neighbors to speed up negotiations for a trilateral free trade pact
SEOUL: South Korea, China and Japan agreed to expand trade cooperation on Sunday, ahead of US President Donald Trump’s plans to impose reciprocal tariffs.
South Korean Industry Minister Ahn Duk-geun met with Japanese Trade Minister Yoji Muto and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao in Seoul for the first trilateral meeting among the three countries since 2019.
They agreed to speed up negotiations toward a trilateral free trade agreement, which have not progressed since talks first began in 2012.
“We will continue discussions to accelerate trilateral FTA negotiations with the goal of realizing a fair, comprehensive and high-quality FTA that is mutually beneficial,” the ministers said in a joint statement issued after the meeting.
Ahn said cooperation among the three countries was necessary amid “the rapidly changing global economic and trade” environment.
“There is a need for the three countries to cooperate on the basis of mutual respect and trust, in order to create a more stable environment for global trade and investment,” Ahn said during his opening remarks at the meeting.
Ahn and his counterparts also agreed to strengthen the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, a trade framework among 15 Asia-Pacific countries aimed at lowering trade barriers, and to expand collaboration in rising industries, including renewable energy and digital transformation.
Sunday’s trilateral meet comes ahead of Trump’s expected announcement of “reciprocal tariffs” on April 2. US officials have previously cited China and South Korea as countries with whom Washington has had “persistent trade deficits.”
On Wednesday, Trump unveiled a 25 percent tariff on all cars and auto parts shipped to the US that is set to take effect on April 3. The move could deal a heavy blow to South Korea and Japan’s economies, which rely on auto exports to the North American country.
After Mexico, South Korea is the world’s largest exporter of vehicles to the US, followed by Japan, according to data from S&P.
“South Korea and Japan in particular are trying to decrease pressures from the US by increasing trade volume with China and Japan,” Park Duck-bae, an economics adjunct professor at Sungkyunkwan University, told Arab News.
“Since they are all facing similar threats from the US, they are getting together to pool their response to the US tariff policies.”
By increasing cooperation with South Korea and Japan, Beijing will be able to strengthen its position in the region, said Moon Heung-ho, an expert on China and honorary professor at the Graduate School of International Studies in Hanyang University.
“China is trying to exert its influence in the Middle East and Central Asia, but it is difficult due to the presence of the US and Russia. They are trying to cozy up with their neighbors first … The fact that the statement stresses norms like multilateralism and free trade is part of China’s strategy to claim the upper hand in its power struggle with the US,” Moon told Arab News.
“Increasing cooperation and driving a wedge between the US and its traditional allies, like South Korea and Japan, is an important win for China.”
China, Japan and South Korea are among Asia’s five largest economies, with the first two holding the top positions, as per gross domestic product. The three countries make up about 20 percent of the world’s population.
Shawwal crescent sighted, Pakistan to mark Eid Al-Fitr tomorrow
- Eid Al-Fitr begins on the first day of the month of Shawwal in the Islamic lunar calendar
- It is one of two major Muslim festivals that marks end of holy fasting month of Ramadan
ISLAMABAD: The crescent for the month of Shawwal was sighted in Pakistan on Sunday and consequently, Eid Al-Fitr will be celebrated on Monday, March 31, the Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee announced.
The three-day Eid Al-Fitr festival starts on the first day of the month of Shawwal in the Islamic lunar calendar. The festival marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan.
The Central Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, the country’s apex moon-sighting body, met in Islamabad under the chairmanship of Maulana Abdul Khabir Azad for the sighting of the Shawwal crescent.
“[We] received testimonies of the sighting of the Shawwal moon from various areas of Pakistan today, which include Lahore, Bahawalpur, Islamabad, Sheikhupura, Kasur and other areas,” Maulana Azad announced at a press conference.
“Hence, it was decided with consensus that the first of Shawwal will be on March 31, Monday.”
Pakistan’s government this week announced a three-day holiday from Mar. 31 till Apr. 2 on account of the Muslim festival of Eid Al-Fitr.
The Shawwal moon was sighted in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, marking the end of the month of Ramadan. Eid Al-Fitr is being celebrated in the Kingdom, United Arab Emirates and other Middle Eastern countries today.
Thailand, Myanmar race to find earthquake survivors as death toll tops 1,700
- China, Malaysia among countries dispatching rescue teams to Myanmar
- Bangkok authorities are still trying to rescue survivors from a collapsed building
BANGKOK: Thai and Burmese rescue teams were racing against time on Sunday in a desperate search for survivors, two days after a massive earthquake struck Myanmar and killed more than 1,700 people.
The 7.7-magnitude quake hit midday Friday with an epicenter near Myanmar’s second-largest city, Mandalay, destroying scores of buildings and cultural sites and damaging other vital infrastructure, including the local airport.
The extensive damage in a country ravaged by civil war was hampering relief efforts, as the death toll in Myanmar rose to around 1,700 people on Sunday, according to a statement issued by the ruling junta, with about 3,400 others injured and 300 more missing.
“What we’re seeing right now is unexpected, and I cannot imagine what that means for people who are living in those areas,” Marie Manrique, acting head of delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross in Myanmar, said in a video statement.
Mandalay, Sagaing, Naypyidaw and Bago are the hardest-hit areas, she said, but impacts of the earthquakes were also felt in Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon.
“Many people in the city of Yangon … have not had electricity or running water since the day of the earthquake. So that just gives us a good impression on what the situation is on ground zero in Mandalay and Sagaing,” she said.
Local news outlet Myanmar Now said that crematoriums in Mandalay were “struggling to cope” due to a surge in fatalities.
“Major cemeteries … are overwhelmed, with bodies piling up as families seek to cremate their deceased,” a report from the publication reads.
Foreign aid and international rescue teams have started arriving in Myanmar after the military issued a rare plea for help as the nation grappled with the deadliest natural disaster to hit the country in years.
In neighboring Thailand, authorities said the tremors had killed at least 18 people, with videos posted on social media showing water surging from pools atop high-rise hotels and apartments, while one clip showed a dramatic collapse of a 30-story structure that was under construction.
At least 10 people died on that site alone, which is near the city’s Chatuchak Park.
Bangkok authorities were concentrating their rescue operation on that location, as 78 people remain unaccounted for.
“I would like to confirm that we are doing our best because I believe that there is still a chance to find survivors inside,” Bangkok Gov. Chadchart Sittipunt said at a press conference.
There is a critical 72-hour window to reach those trapped, with some thought to be meters underground.
Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said in a statement that the operation is being expedited “by utilizing international tools and experts to scan for vital signs.”
The statement read: “The height of the debris is approximately 20 meters, and the tools are capable of accurately scanning positions and relaying information to experts stationed on a crane basket … The search and rescue operation is now focused on the top, with officers racing against time.”
Friday’s earthquake was a shock for Bangkok residents like Paiboon Auengkongkatong, 34, who had never experienced such tremors.
“I never experienced this before … I’ve always stayed in Bangkok my whole life. This is the first time,” he told Arab News.
Auengkongkatong was at a restaurant on the seventh floor of the Central Rama 9 mall when the quake hit. With a group of friends, he then began running toward the fire escape.
“When we were going down, the building was shaking and the walls were cracking,” he said. “Some stones were falling down; that was really, really scary because I didn’t know if it was going to collapse.”
King Salman, crown prince joined by Lebanese PM, other royals in Eid prayers
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s King Salman performed Eid Al-Fitr prayers at Al-Salam Palace in Jeddah on Sunday morning.
The King was accompanied by various other royals and dignitaries.
Elsewhere Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman performed Eid Al-Fitr prayers in Makkah alongside worshippers who filled the Grand Mosque and its surrounding courtyards.
Joining the crown prince was Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, along with other princes, scholars, ministers, and senior officials.
After prayers, the crown prince met with those who had joined him for a breakfast banquet.
Azerbaijan economy minister to visit Pakistan next week to finalize key investment deals
- Cash-strapped Pakistan is currently navigating a tricky path to recovery under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund bailout program
- The South Asian country has been making efforts to generate revenue through increased trade and investment deals with friendly nations
ISLAMABAD: Azerbaijan Minister of the Economy Mikayil Jabbarov will visit Pakistan next week to finalize key investment agreements between the two countries, the Pakistan prime minister’s office said on Sunday.
The statement came after Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif’s telephonic conversation with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of Eid Al-Fitr, in which he conveyed his greetings and warm wishes to the brotherly people of Azerbaijan.
The two leaders reaffirmed their resolve to further strengthen the deep-rooted fraternal ties between the two countries and build upon the Sharif’s visit to Baku last month, according to the Pakistan premier’s office.
“The two leaders agreed that the Minister of Economy of Azerbaijan would visit Islamabad in the first week of April to hold discussions with the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister and also pay a courtesy call on the Prime Minister,” Sharif’s office said.
“This visit would ensure finalization of the key investment agreements between both sides thus setting the stage for President Ilham Aliyev’s expected visit to Islamabad in the month of April.”
During his visit to Baku in Feb., Sharif had announced the two nations would sign deals in April to boost bilateral investments to $2 billion. Multiple agreements for cooperation in the trade, energy, tourism, education and other sectors were also signed during the visit.
The developments come as cash-strapped Pakistan navigates a tricky path to economic recovery under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) program. The South Asian country has been making efforts to generate revenue through increased trade and investment deals with friendly nations and regional and international allies, focusing on export-led growth.
In September last year, Azerbaijan bought JF-17 Block III fighter jets from Pakistan, reportedly in a $1.6bn deal.
During President Aliyev’s visit to Pakistan last year, a joint committee was set up to materialize projects in trade, commerce, information technology, tourism, telecommunication, mineral resources and other sectors. Sharif said at the time the current trade volume of $100 million did not reflect the “true” trade potential between the two countries.
