Huckabee Confident Hamas Will Be Disarmed as Abraham Accords Expand

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee declared Thursday that Hamas will be disarmed “absolutely,” reaffirming the Trump administration’s determination to see the Gaza ceasefire plan through to its next phase despite Hamas’s refusal to lay down arms.

“The challenge of getting Hamas disarmed is not a goal that has been abandoned,” Huckabee said in an exclusive interview with JNS. “The president has been very clear: They have to disarm and recognize they have no future in Gaza.”

Huckabee emphasized that disarmament remains a non-negotiable part of the ceasefire framework brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump and supported by regional powers. “It is absolutely going to happen. President Trump said they can do it the easy way or the hard way. Iran didn’t take him seriously … They took the hard way.”

The ambassador spoke ahead of Trump’s anticipated meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Florida after Christmas, where the second stage of the Gaza plan is expected to be discussed.

Despite concerns about Hamas’s refusal to disarm and the fragility of the truce, Huckabee noted that the Oct. 10 ceasefire has held, with aid flowing into Gaza and preparations underway for an international security force.

Regarding Turkish involvement, he confirmed Israel’s de facto veto on certain participants, though left the door open for a limited Turkish role: “It doesn’t mean that the Turks can’t have some role,” Huckabee said.

He also revealed that U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff met with officials from Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey in Miami on Friday to advance the next phase of the ceasefire.

Huckabee predicted further normalization deals between Israel and Arab states in 2026. “I do anticipate that we will see the expansion of the Abraham Accords,” he said. “I would not be overwhelmingly surprised if you didn’t see something that would happen very close to Israel, in Syria, Lebanon.”

The former Arkansas governor slammed global media coverage of the war, accusing it of spreading “canards” and antisemitic tropes. “Journalism is dead. What we have now is an international opinion market,” he said.

He dismissed repeated reports of tensions between Trump and Netanyahu, calling them “absurd” and saying such claims were often based on anonymous sources with political agendas.

A longtime Christian Zionist, Huckabee reflected on his decades-long connection to Israel, his deep support for the Jewish state, and his wife’s relief at not needing to keep “missile clothes” near the bed anymore.

He warned that rising global antisemitism threatens both Jews and Christians: “Every enemy that Israel and the Jewish people has is ultimately the enemy of the Christian people and of America.”

Huckabee described his post in Jerusalem as “the assignment of a lifetime,” adding, “We went back home to Arkansas in November for five-and-a-half days … and my wife and I looked at each other and said it is time to come back home.” Share this article or subscribe to our newsletter for updates.