U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee pushed back on a call from the World Health Organization to pressure Israel on Gaza aid, calling instead for international focus on Hamas to “sign an agreement so that humanitarian aid can flow into Gaza to the people who desperately need it.”
In a Monday post on X, Huckabee shared a video message responding to a request from Dr. Hanan Balkhy, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, who had urged him to press Israel to increase humanitarian assistance into Gaza.
“How about we put the pressure where it really belongs — on Hamas,” Huckabee wrote in the post.
A @WHO official called upon me to put pressure on Israel to bring more humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. How about we put the pressure where it really belongs – on Hamas. pic.twitter.com/5AAv5Q63DD
— Ambassador Mike Huckabee (@USAmbIsrael) April 21, 2025
“This past weekend, Dr. Hanan Balkhy… called upon me to put more pressure on Israel to bring humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza,” he states in the video. “I appreciate the message… and today what I would like to suggest is that we work together on putting the pressure where it really belongs, on Hamas.”
Huckabee called for the terror group, which has controlled Gaza since 2007, to sign an agreement that would allow safe and unrestricted delivery of aid, while also demanding the release of Israeli hostages abducted during Hamas’s October 7 attacks.
One of the saddest stories of 7 Oct was the murder of Ruth Perez, 17, who had muscular dystrophy & cerebral palsy, & was wheelchair bound. She was enjoying the music at the Nova Festival.
— David Atherton (@DaveAtherton20) March 21, 2024
Her body was days later discarded near the Gaza border riddled with bullets.
He loving… pic.twitter.com/Uk5zIhV5Hh
“When that happens… we hope that humanitarian aid will flow, and flow freely, knowing that it will be done without Hamas being able to confiscate and abuse their own people,” he said.
The ambassador’s statement comes amid mounting international pressure on Israel to allow greater aid access into Gaza. Israeli officials maintain that Hamas routinely diverts or seizes humanitarian shipments for its own use, a concern echoed by U.S. lawmakers and aid groups on the ground.
House Leadership buried $9 billion of aid to Gaza in the Israel aid bill.
— Rep Andy Biggs (@RepAndyBiggsAZ) April 18, 2024
Hamas has repeatedly stolen aid designated for Gaza, and there's nothing to stop them from doing so again.
We're funding both sides of a war.
A recent Wall Street Journal investigation confirmed that Hamas stole humanitarian aid intended for civilians in Gaza and resold it to fund its war efforts — undermining international law claims and exposing the terror group’s exploitation of relief efforts.
Important @WSJ article confirms Hamas stole Gaza aid—meant to be free—and sold it to fund its war machine. Israel therefore had no legal obligation to allow aid under Geneva law. It did so anyhow, yet still condemned for fake "intentional starvation" claims. pic.twitter.com/eHYnB6IA2W
— Aizenberg (@Aizenberg55) April 17, 2025
“It was outrageous that the Biden Administration forced deliveries of aid to Hamas in the first place,” responded Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton.
Good.
— Tom Cotton (@TomCottonAR) April 17, 2025
It was outrageous that the Biden Administration forced deliveries of aid to Hamas in the first place. https://t.co/Z1GvrxAeLl
Last month, Eli Sharabi, a recently released Israeli hostage and survivor of Hamas captivity, delivered powerful testimony before the UN Security Council exposing Hamas’s theft of foreign aid and abuse of civilians.
“Let me tell you as an eyewitness what happened to that aid. Hamas stole it.”
— Oren Marmorstein (@OrenMarmorstein) March 20, 2025
“Dozens and dozens of boxes paid by your governments feeding terrorists who tortured me and murdered my family.”
“Hamas eats like kings while hostages starve.”
“Hamas steals from civilians.”
Eli… pic.twitter.com/fTzungXiER
Huckabee’s remarks reinforce the view that humanitarian suffering in Gaza is inseparable from Hamas’s continued control, and that pressuring Israel without demanding accountability from Hamas risks further emboldening the terror group.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at