With Hanukkah beginning Sunday night at sundown, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said newly released video of Israeli hostages celebrating the holiday in Hamas captivity is both inspiring and “horrific,” telling Newsmax it shows extraordinary faith amid barbaric cruelty.
Appearing on Newsmax's "Wake Up America" on Friday, Huckabee reacted to footage showing young hostages observing the Jewish holiday before their deaths, underscoring what he described as the moral divide between the prisoners and their captors.
"It takes an extraordinary person of genuine faith that, in the midst of captivity, when they're being tortured and starved and deprived of not only their liberty, but their very, just simple comforts, that they do not forsake the worshiping and the faithfulness to God," Huckabee said.
"I think that's incredible," he continued. "And what a testimony, looking at these very young people making this decision, that their faith still matters to them."
At the same time, Huckabee said the video leaves no ambiguity about the nature of the Palestinian terror group.
"I hope people understand why Hamas cannot be ever considered anything other than a group of savages, and this is clear evidence," he said.
Drawing on personal experience, Huckabee said he has met with all of the hostage families during his time in Israel, including the families of the six seen in the video.
"I tell you, it's gut wrenching just to know what they've been through," he said, adding that their suffering was entirely preventable.
"That suffering they've had could have all been avoided if Hamas had let these hostages go and never taken them captive to begin with," Huckabee said.
The discussion then expanded to the network within Gaza that enabled the kidnappings, including civilians who opened their homes to Hamas.
"Some of the terrorists not only were doctors, some were teachers," Huckabee said. "There were others who shielded Hamas by letting these hostages be captive in their homes."
He warned Americans against overly simplistic views of terrorism, noting that "terrorists don't all look the same," and may blend into everyday society.
Addressing the widespread criticism of Israel's military response to the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terror attack that sparked the war, Huckabee recalled a conversation his friend had with her son when he condemned Israel's conduct.
When her son said Israel came down too hard on Hamas following the 2023 attack, Huckabee said his friend responded, "'If you had been taken hostage and someone had kidnapped you and they were starving you and raping you and beating you, what do you think your mother would do?'"
"He laughed and he said, 'Mother, you would do whatever it took, and woe be unto them for doing it,'" Huckabee said. "And what she said is what people need to remember: 'Israel collectively has done what every parent would do to get his or her son or daughter or mother or father back home.'"
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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