The Arab states, especially the UAE and Saudi Arabia, are cheering on Israel and "want this problem [with Hezbollah] done," said retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Blaine Holt on Newsmax.
"They won't say it publicly, but I can tell you they're cheering on Israel. They want this problem done and they're very worried about a nuclear-powered Iran rising," Holt said Monday during an appearance on "Newsline."
"Let's not make a mistake, when you say the word Hezbollah, when you say the word Hamas or Houthis, you're really saying the word Iran, and the isolated Israelis, isolated by us, they are now doing the same to Hezbollah. They're going after them. And [Hezbollah secretary-general Hassan] Nasrallah is completely isolated. He has one commander left that was in his inner circle just 20 days ago."
If the Biden administration keeps looking the other way on Iranian sanctions and "let them accrue billions of dollars in illicit oil trade money to fill their coffers and that of their adversaries … if you distance yourself from your No. 1 ally and play domestic politics to Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin before you acknowledge Israel's right to exist, then no amount of hardware that we put in that region or troops will be deployed," he added.
"What I am concerned about is do our forces in the region have the right to protect themselves? Do commanders that are fielded have the ability to respond if fired on? And I'm not confident, based on the history that we've seen, that they do," Holt said.
The airstrikes between Israel and Hezbollah have escalated significantly in the past week after pagers and walkie-talkies used by Hezbollah exploded throughout Lebanon, killing 37 and injuring more than 2,700, in an attack linked to Israel.
Hezbollah has fired increasingly on Israel in retaliation for its ongoing war in Gaza.
Biden "doesn't know what's going on," said Holt. "'I'm not sure about the legality of having a first lady run a Cabinet meeting. We haven't seen that since Woodrow Wilson's wife did it in his administration with Colonel House, but we're in very, very dangerous times when the United States is this vulnerable and looks this weak and has millions of fighting-age men running around it, we've got a problem, and we've got to look at our own domestic security here."
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Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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