Huckabee denies he’s been involved in efforts to prevent Haredim from collapsing Israeli government

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee denies a Channel 13 report revealing that he has been meeting with ultra-Orthodox coalition members as part of efforts to prevent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government from collapsing.

“There has been no attempt to influence Haredi Knesset members regarding a decision to dissolve the government,” Huckabee writes on X, adding that it is not his job to choose the country’s government.

Hours earlier, the US Embassy issued a statement that didn’t deny the Channel 13 report, instead saying that the contents of Huckabee’s meetings are private.

“Israel needs both scholars and soldiers but how they determine the balance is not something I could or would weigh in on,” the ambassador says in his updated statement.

He acknowledges that he was asked about the US reaction to a collapsed government, and that he responded that most Americans would see it “as an unstable one given an ongoing war, daily threats from Houthi missiles, and a possible nuclear threat from Iran.”

“I emphatically stated it was our responsibility to work with the government that Israelis chose,” Huckabee insists. “There was no attempt to instruct or advise other than mentioning that the conflict between scholars and soldiers might best be settled by someone they were all familiar with, King Solomon, who faced difficult choices and found a way to resolve them.”

“Reports that go beyond that are either misleading or untrue,” he concludes.

Citing diplomatic and political sources, Channel 13 news reported Monday that Huckabee told senior Haredi politicians “government stability is important for addressing the Iranian issue,” and that early elections would be a mistake.

One of the meetings was held Thursday with Minister Meir Porush of the United Torah Judaism party. According to the network, Huckabee urged Porush “not to break up the government.”