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--:-- Georgia Howe: Welcome to Morning Wire, I'm Georgia Howe.
--:-- John Bickley: And I'm John Bickley, editor-in-chief of The Daily Wire.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Today, we're joined by Aryeh Lightstone, a senior advisor to the U.S. ambassador to Israel under the Trump administration. He's with us live from Israel.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Thank you for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Aryeh, it's been a week since the terror group Hamas orchestrated a surprise attack on Israel from Gaza. Can you describe what's happening on the ground now?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: It's been five days since the attack, and Israel has cleared out all the terrorists from Israel proper. They're now mounting a war at the border to clear Hamas from Gaza forever.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Where are you and what are you doing right now?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: I'm with you on the way to the army base. We're driving to the south, and Gaza is roughly that way. So, you're seeing this live and in real time.
--:-- John Bickley: Aryeh, you've just watched the worst episode to befall the Jewish people since the Holocaust. What's your message to the world?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: It's incumbent upon everybody who cares about the difference between good and evil, Jewish and not Jewish, to stand for good. I'm lucky enough to be in Israel at this moment, and I'm bringing food and supplies to the soldiers.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The Biden administration says there isn't actually any proof that Iran knew about the attack or was involved. Do you believe that Iran was behind the attack?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: I believe Iran was behind the attack. Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran all say Iran was involved. And as a Jew, you take people seriously when they say they want to kill you.
--:-- John Bickley: There's been some fighting at the Israel-Lebanon border. Do you expect Hezbollah to join the conflict on a larger scale?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: I certainly hope not. I think Hezbollah needs to show that they're in the fight, but I don't want them to join the conflict.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Nikki Haley said, "There are too many rockets in Lebanon, for if they shoot the second one, there cannot be any more Lebanon." What do you make of that statement?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: I think that's brilliant. The only way to stop Hezbollah from getting into the border is through deterrence, the like of which we have not seen.
--:-- John Bickley: What do you make of the level of support for Israel that we're seeing in the U.S.? Are you concerned that Americans may waver, especially in light of the Ukraine war?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Americans will not waver. Maybe some politicians will waver, but Americans saw the raping of women, the kidnapping of Holocaust survivors. Americans are good. Americans liberated Europe from the Nazis, and America will stand with Israel as it purges itself from the Nazis in their own midst.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, Egypt is saying that they won't accept civilian refugees from Gaza despite calls from Israel to do so. What's your comment on that?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: I think that's a violation of international law and possibly perpetuating a war crime. For Egypt not to open up the Rafa gate and allow out civilians is insane.
--:-- John Bickley: What's the significance of the unity government that's been formed by Prime Minister Netanyahu and his main rival, Benny Gantz?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: It's a critical move. Israel cannot go to war with a divided politics. Israel needs to go to war together, collectively, with unity.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Last time we spoke, you explained that Hamas' leadership is suspected of hiding out in Qatar, basically living a life of luxury there. Do you expect that the U.S. is urging Qatar to give up those Hamas leaders?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: I think the Hamas leaders are not suspected of living a life of luxury; they absolutely are. They steal from their people, they put their people out to die. But Qatar has a position of meaningful influence, and I'm optimistic that they will do the right thing at this juncture in history and get the hostages home safely and immediately.
--:-- John Bickley: Internationally, at least in the West, we see a left divide over Israel's role in this conflict. Does that divide also exist in Israel?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: No, it doesn't. Israel is united from right to left that Hamas needs to be eradicated. I don't know a single Israeli who wants to eradicate Palestinians or any other people, but they want to eradicate the hate that is within them and they will do what it takes to eradicate that hate.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, tell us a little bit more about what's happening on the ground now in Israel. You said they've expelled all terrorists from Israel. Are the Israeli people safe?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: The Israeli people on the home front are safe, but there are still rockets firing. I have good friends who were in a bomb shelter just three hours ago, and they were safe. Iron Dome does miracles, but the constant living in fear of a rocket landing on your head needs to end.
--:-- John Bickley: Aryeh, thank you so much for coming on. Good luck with everything you're doing.
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: Thank you.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you'd like, is there a message you'd like to share with our listeners?
--:-- Aryeh Lightstone: For your listeners who are praying types, please pray. Please pray for the soldiers of Israel. Please pray for the people of Israel. Please pray for Jews around the world who are being threatened by virulent anti-Semitism. And also pray for the Palestinians who are victims of their own oppressors. I hope that they'll be liberated soon.
--:-- John Bickley: Thank you, Aryeh. That was Aryeh Lightstone, senior advisor to the U.S. ambassador to Israel under the Trump administration.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And this has been an extra edition of Morning Wire.
