(José Niño, Headline USA) Touring Gaza left Jared Kushner with an image of devastation so complete he compared it to a nuclear blast but insisted the Israeli campaign was a legitimate war.
Jared Kushner told CBS News that Gaza looked as though “a nuclear bomb had been set off” when he toured the territory last week, yet he firmly rejected any suggestion that Israel’s military campaign constituted genocide.
In an interview with “60 Minutes” correspondent Lesley Stahl that aired Sunday, Kushner and fellow Trump envoy Steve Witkoff described the devastation they witnessed while defending Israel’s conduct during the war.
“It looked almost like a nuclear bomb had been set off in that area,” Kushner said. “And then you see these people moving back. And I asked the IDF, ‘Where are they going?’ Like, I’m looking around. These are all ruins. And they said, ‘Well, they’re going back to the areas where their destroyed home was, onto their plot, and they’re gonna pitch a tent.’ And it’s very sad, because you think to yourself, they really have nowhere else to go.”
Kushner says Gaza looks like a “nuclear bomb” hit it — while he and envoy Witkoff insist it’s not genocide. pic.twitter.com/BfS0VUwQCJ
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) October 20, 2025
When Stahl pressed him on whether the destruction amounted to genocide, Kushner quickly dismissed the characterization.
“Would you say now, having been there, that it was genocide?” Stahl asked.
“No, no,” Kushner insisted.
“Absolutely not, no,” Witkoff added. “There was a war being fought.”
Later in the interview, Kushner offered a stark assessment of the regional balance of power, framing the devastation in Gaza as evidence of Israel’s strength rather than humanitarian catastrophe.
Stahl asked the envoys what Israel should do to restore its international standing in light of rising antisemitism.
“I think what Israel should just do is focus on showing people that if you’re partners with Israel you can benefit,” Kushner said to CBS during the 60 Minutes interview. “And if you are against Israel, they’re a tough– they’re a tough opponent. You look at after October 7th, Hezbollah now is mostly destroyed. Iran is weaker than they’ve ever been.
And Gaza is mostly destroyed. And it’s not just the buildings. You have all the terror infrastructure. Underneath Gaza, I mean, you had tens of billions of dollars of aid that went into Gaza, and their democratically elected government, Hamas, used that to build over 450 miles of terror tunnels.”
The interview also touched on divisions within the Republican coalition over support for Israel. Stahl noted that some leaders in the MAGA movement have begun questioning American backing for Israeli military operations.
“Jared, even the president’s [MAGA] base … that’s beginning to fracture. You have some people—leaders—who aren’t supporting Israel?” Stahl said.
“It’s okay,” Kushner responded. “Look– MAGA– I always think a political party is a collection of tribes. And I think the very strong– majority of President Trump’s– MAGA base does support Israel. But again, most people are against war, and people don’t like what’s happened over the last couple years.”
Stahl raised questions about potential conflicts of interest stemming from the envoys’ extensive business dealings with Gulf states, investments worth billions of dollars that have continued even as they conduct diplomatic negotiations.
“So, you have both done a lot of business with the Gulf states — billions and billions of dollars worth of business. And you’ve done some of the business while this negotiation has gone on and that has raised some issues of conflict. I mean, some blurring of a line between, you know, what you’re doing in terms of foreign policy and benefiting financially from what’s going on,” Stahl said.
Kushner rejected any suggestion of impropriety.
“So first of all, Lesley, nobody’s pointed out any instances where Steve or I have– pursued any policies or done anything that have not been in the interest of America.,” Kushner said.
He reframed the concern as an asset rather than a liability.
“What people call conflicts of interests, Steve and I call experience and trusted relationships that we have throughout the world,” Kushner said.
“If Steve and I didn’t have these deep relationships, the deal that we were able to help get done, that freed these hostages would not have occurred,” he added.
José Niño is the deputy editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/JoseAlNino
