Hillary Clinton heaped some rare praise on her former arch-enemy Donald Trump for his handling of the Gaza peace deal in a recent interview.
“I really commend President Trump and his administration,” Clinton told CBS News 24/7 Friday.
“As well as Arab leaders in the region, for making the commitment to the 20-point plan and seeing a path forward for what’s often called the day after,” she added.
CBS News
Clinton’s comments came just a day after Hamas agreed to Trump’s peace plan in a stunning move that is expected to end the two year war that’s ravaged the Gaza Strip.
The agreement — which received cheers from Gazans and Israelis alike — will see the release of the remaining 48 Israeli hostages as early as Monday, and Israeli forces withdrawing from the territory in stages.
Hamas is to be disarmed, while a transitional government led by an international body will be created to govern Gaza.
An independent Palestinian state will be an “aspiration” for the people of Gaza, though those terms were left unclear in the agreement.
Clinton — who argued for a two-state solution as Secretary of State under former President Barack Obama — encouraged the Trump administration to buckle down and hold Israel and Gazans accountable to the terms of their deal, as well as the rest of the world.
“Let’s now support this process and bring it together, not just in a nonpartisan way in our own country, but literally internationally as a great global commitment to try to bring peace, security, stability and a better future to the Middle East,” Clinton told CBS.
She also praised the Trump administration’s shrewd move to bring Israel to the negotiating table after Hamas leaders were attacked by Israel during peace talks in Qatar in September.
“That provided an opening for both President Trump and his representatives to marshal all of the regional powers, including, of course, Qatar, but also to make it clear to Israel, ‘No, this is now enough. We cannot continue this. This conflict needs to end, and we’ve got to move on,” Clinton said.
