U.S. Senator Joni Ernst today met in person with Israel’s top leaders as they respond to terror attacks that started over the weekend. After the meeting, Ernst told Radio Iowa that Hamas needs to be destroyed.
“We’re talking about a terrorist organization that has taken over the Gaza Strip,” Ernst said. “They are terrorists, no different than al Qaida, no different than ISIS.”
Ernst spoke by phone with Radio Iowa from Jordan after spending much of today in Israel. “We talked to a brother and his sister whose 80 year old father was taken away at gunpoint. They have no idea where he is now, what has happened to him. In that same event, their other brother was killed,” Ernst said. “They went house to house, destroying the homes. burning them down. They lit bodies on fire. They were intent on a reign of terror.”
Ernst, a Republican from Red Oak, and three Democrats from the U.S. House met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as well as the leader of the opposition party in Israel. Ernst said having a bipartisan delegation from the U.S. meet with Israel’s leaders sends “a powerful message.”
“There was no daylight in any of our views as we stood with the leadership of Israel,” Ernst said, “as well as those Americans who are dual citizens here in Israel.”
Ernst, a retired Iowa National Guard officer who did a tour of duty in Iraq, said Hamas chose this weekend to strike knowing it was a major Jewish holiday and there would be many Americans visiting family in Israel. Israel declared war on Sunday.
“I know there have been protests even in Iowa, people standing with Hamas, and we need them to understand that this organization is exactly like ISIS,” Ernst said.
Ernst left the U.S. last Wednesday, originally planning to attend a conference with Israelis, Palestinians and Arab state leaders during the trip. Her first stops, though, were in places like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia’s crown prince this week has pledged to stand by Palestine, dealing a blow to efforts to form a diplomatic relationship among the U.S., Israel and Saudi Arabia.
“We want to see peace between Saudi Arabia and Israel,” Ernst said. “We know that Iran fears peace. They want more chaos and terror in the region…It’s time that these allies and partners in the region stand united against Iran and these extreme terrorist proxies.”
Hamas burst through border walls in Saturday’s attacks and has been firing rockets at Israel’s capital this week. Israel’s Iron Dome defense system has repelled thousands of rockets. Ernst told Radio Iowa the U.S. must provide Israel with additional intelligence as well as munitions to restock the Iron Dome. Ernst, a part of GOP leadership in the U.S. Senate, said House Republicans must quickly select a new speaker so congress can act.
“I have been overseas for many days now and as I watch the different news channels in whatever country I happen to be in…they all talk about what they see as chaos in the House of Representatives right now,” Ernst said during the interview. “They look to the United States for leadership and when that leadership is not present, they wonder about the security of our own nation, the United States, but the security and stability in other regions.”
Ernst is also calling for freezing $6 billion of Iran’s assets, being held in South Korea, that were part of a prisoner swamp the Biden Administration arranged between the U.S. and Iran last month.
“Congress needs to come in and lean in heavy on this and make sure that those assets are frozen once again and make sure that Iran cannot access that money,” Ernst said. “We cannot continue to enable terrorism.”
The “sadness and terror” in Israel is palpable, according to Ernst. One of the Americans Ernst met in Israel had just attended the funeral of his 18-year-old son’s best friend.
“It’s devastating to hear about family members that were hauled away by Hamas, children that were burned alive,” Ernst said. “We would never tolerate that in our own nation. Why would we allow that to happen in Israel, our closest ally and partner?”
AUDIO of Radio Iowa’s interview with Ernst, runs 12:30
Iowa Congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks has been in some of the overseas meetings with Ernst, including a visit to Bahrain on Monday, but Miller-Meeks was not part of the delegation that visited Israel today.