Destroying Hamas, Hezbollah & Houthis is ‘of great importance to US,’ Defense Sec Hegseth tells Netanyahu

Continuing his remarkable diplomatic visit to the new U.S. administration, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with new Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Wednesday, who assured him the U.S. remained “100% committed to Israel’s security.”

Hegseth “emphasized the unbreakable bond that exists between the United States and Israel and praised Israel as a model ally in the Middle East,” according to a Pentagon readout of the meeting.

The secretary’s comments continued the exceptionally warm and friendly atmosphere of Netanyahu’s visit, the first by a foreign leader during the new administration.

Hegseth noted his personal experience visiting Israel “eight or nine times,” recounting visits to the Western Wall with Netanyahu as well as witnessing the IDF in action and understanding the proximity of Israel’s enemies to its borders.

“It always struck me, the sense of purpose that permeates the state of Israel living under an existential threat. And have always had a great deal of respect for the response that country has had,” he told Netanyahu at a press briefing after the meeting.

Highlighting the close alignment of the two governments, Hegseth emphasized that “destroying Hamas's capabilities in Gaza, Hezbollah's capabilities in the north, damaging the Houthi infrastructure in Yemen are things that are of great importance to America.”

The secretary also stressed the new administration is “laser-focused on reviving the warrior ethos, on rebuilding America's military, and reestablishing deterrence,” noting that Israel did this in its region “in impressive, aggressive and important ways.”

The two main topics of discussion in the closed-door meeting, according to the Pentagon, were the war in Gaza and the threat from the Iranian regime.

Hegseth lauded Netanyahu for his “courage and leadership” during the war, and emphasized the administration’s ongoing support for Israel's right to defend itself. 

Netanyahu in turn praised “the Administration's commitment to providing Israel with the munitions it needs.”

Earlier this week, the administration requested congressional approval for the sale of around $1 billion worth of bombs and engineering equipment to Israel, after Trump said two weeks ago he would release the shipment of 2,000-pound bombs that the Biden administration had delayed due to its opposition to Israel’s operation in Rafah.

In his statement, Hegseth vowed the U.S. and Israel will continue “to grow our defense industrial base. We've supplied munitions that were previously not supplied that are useful in eradicating radical enemies. And we are committed to continuing to do so.”

Regarding the Iranian threat, Hegseth commended Israel's military operations that “significantly degraded Iran and its proxies,” and both leaders agreed that Iran “remains a threat to regional security” and agreed to combat this threat together.

Netanyahu in turn praised Trump’s team as “extraordinary friends, extraordinary patriots of America and therefore also champions of the American-Israel Alliance.”

He stressed that, unlike other allies, Israel has “no compunction about fighting our enemies by ourselves. We're willing to shoulder the burden of our defense.”

However, Netanyahu emphasized that by doing so, Israel was fighting common enemies, “the forces of radicalism and terror and the forces that are anti-American at their core, they call you the Great Satan and they call us the small Satan.”

“The only way you get peace and an enduring peace is by being very, very strong. And with our alliance with your support, including the decision you just mentioned of supplying Israel the much-needed tools for our defense, we are a lot stronger than we've ever been,” Netanyahu added.