Reentering the Iranian nuclear deal is a “death wish” for Israel and the world, former US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley warned Monday.
“The idea right now that you have multiple countries around the world, including the United States, looking to figure out how to redo this Iran deal is nothing more than a death wish for Israel and eventually a death wish for the world,” she said during a conversation with a select group of reporters from her Jerusalem hotel.
Haley was in the country on a solidarity mission organized by Christians United for Israel. She spent Sunday touring the rocket-tattered South and Monday in meetings with top Israeli officials, including Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Although she was in touch with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s office, she was unable to meet with him, she said.
Haley lashed out at the Biden administration’s recent efforts to engage with the Islamic Republic, saying Biden’s “falling over himself to get back into the Iran deal is pretty disgusting.”
“Iran is never going to change its ways,” she said. “It is never going to stop saying death to Israel. It is never going to stop saying death to America. And the only way that we can effect change is to pull the money back and pull the purse strings back.”
Iran directly funds Israel’s enemies, including Hamas and Hezbollah, Haley said.
“If you fund Iran, you are funding terrorists that want to kill Israel,” she said.
Haley spent time on the Lebanese-Israel border during her tenure as UN ambassador from 2017-2018. What happened last month during the 12-day conflict with Hamas pales in comparison to the threat posed by Hezbollah, she said.
Twelve Israelis were killed during Operation Guardian of the Walls, including two children, and several hundred were wounded. On the Palestinian side, the Gaza Health Ministry said more than 200 people were killed.
“You have Hezbollah waiting in the wings, and Hezbollah makes Hamas look like child’s play,” Haley said. “Hezbollah is going to be the next issue” for Israel.
She also condemned Biden for failing to thank the Arab countries, such as the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, which normalized ties with Israel as part of the Abraham Accords under former US president Donald Trump. Haley accused Biden of “slapping them in the face” by engaging in talks with Iran.
“You cannot be friends with Israel, and you cannot say thank you to the people who want to be friends with Israel, by getting back into the Iran deal,” she said.
Israel “did a great job showing what happens when you mess with them,” Haley said, adding that she believes Israel will survive because “you cannot destroy what God has blessed, and God blessed Israel.”
However, “I don’t want Israel standing alone,” Haley concluded.
The full interview with Haley will appear in Friday’s Magazine.