Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Israel has an opportunity to have new leadership in the Gaza Strip, urging action following last week’s killing of Hamas leader and mastermind of the Oct. 7 attacks, Yahya Sinwar.
“There’s a window here not only to end the fighting, but to replace Hamas forever,” Graham said in an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” “And the way you do that, is you have normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel. With the death of Sinwar, the door is now open to not only find a way to get Israel to turn over Gaza and eventually Lebanon, but to have it replaced by an Arab coalition offering a better life to the Palestinians.”
“I’ve never been more hopeful that normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel is possible,” he added. “I’ve been working with the Biden administration over a year and a half. I think we’re very close.”
IDF SAYS ‘MISSION IS NOT OVER’ UNTIL HOSTAGES ARE RETURNED: ‘WE WILL NOT REST’
Sen. Lindsey Graham at a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on July 31, 2024. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Graham, who has been working with the Biden administration to broker a deal for Israel and Saudi Arabia to establish diplomatic ties by the end of the year, also told NBC host Kristen Welker that he anticipated a counterattack by Israel against Iran soon but declined to supply a more specific timeline.
“I don’t have any direct knowledge, but I know they’re serious about hitting back,” Graham said, referencing Iran’s recent launching of nearly 200 missiles at Israel. “I think it will be soon, and I think it will be a hard hit. But again, the more you can…
