Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) expressed concern Wednesday that Israel was “coerced” into its ceasefire agreement with Palestinian militant group Hamas.
“I’m hoping they weren’t coerced into a deal before they finish what they need to finish, [which was the] destruction of Hamas, so that Hamas can’t rise again and threaten them again [in a] few years,” Johnson told NewsNation’s Blake Burman on “The Hill.”
The ceasefire agreement, unveiled Wednesday, is expected to begin Sunday, with its first phase including a six-week ceasefire, as well as Hamas releasing 33 hostages out of an estimated 94 people both alive and dead, that it has held for over a year.
President Biden hailed the agreement on Wednesday, saying getting “to this deal has not been easy.”
“I’ve worked on foreign policy for decades. This was one of the toughest negotiations I’ve ever experienced. We reached this point because to the pressure Israel built on Hamas, backed by the United States,” he added.
White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan had said in an interview earlier this week that the U.S. was “so close to a ceasefire and hostage deal” in Gaza.
“Number one, we are so close to a ceasefire and hostage deal, and I think there is a very distinct possibility that we get it across the line this week, before President Biden leaves office,” Sullivan said Monday.
In his NewsNation appearance Wednesday, Johnson said the ceasefire agreement is “good news.”
“It’s good to see the — the violence cease,” he added. “Hopefully, that continues, but we [need to] see all the hostages released; we [need to] see all the hostages accounted for.”
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