August 11, 2025, New York, NY – At a critical moment in hostage negotiations and Gaza humanitarian situation, the American Jewish Congress today strongly endorsed U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar’s warnings that premature pledges to recognize a Palestinian state handed Hamas a political windfall, removed incentives to compromise, and prolonged the war in Gaza.
Speaking at the United Nations Security Council recently, Minister Saar criticized foreign governments that made such pledges during the most sensitive phase of the talks. “They gave Hamas free gifts and an incentive to continue this war,” Saar said, pointing to announcements by France, Britain, Canada, and others.
Secretary Rubio, in a televised interview, underlined the cost of these missteps, stressing that peace is impossible while Hamas remains armed and entrenched in Gaza. “As long as Hamas exists, there will not be peace. This can never happen again,” he said, highlighting three linked priorities: addressing the humanitarian crisis without empowering Hamas, freeing 20 living hostages held in horrific conditions, and ensuring Hamas’s dismantlement to prevent further massacres.
Reacting to Secretary Rubio and Minister Gideon’s statements, American Jewish Congress president Daniel Rosen remarked, “These are not abstract warnings. They are real-time assessments from leaders in the middle of the crisis. Offering political recognition to Hamas’s cause during hostage negotiations all but guaranteed they would reject compromise. It undermines diplomacy, extends suffering, and costs lives.”
The American Jewish Congress calls on the international community to learn from this error. Only a strategy that combines humanitarian relief with the removal of Hamas’s military power, and that avoids rewarding intransigence, can secure the release of hostages and lay the foundation for a lasting peace.
(Photo Credit: FM Sa’ar with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio© Raphi Ben Hakun)
