Iran International
Democratic Senator Cory Booker told Iran International in an interview that Tehran and its armed allies in the region posed an enduring threat to the newly clinched Gaza ceasefire and that Washington must remain vigilant.
The senior senator from New Jersey and ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who has been a vocal supporter of Israel, said its Mideast arch-foe was the primary obstacle to progress.
“Iran plays a destructive role across the Middle East,” Booker said, following the announcement by Hamas and Israel that they had agreed to the first phase of a deal proposed by President Donald Trump to wind down the two-year-old war in Gaza.
“It is the main state sponsor of terrorism and stands behind every terrorist group—from Hamas to Hezbollah. When I speak with major Muslim leaders throughout the region, from Saudi Arabia and the UAE to Egypt, they all say the same thing: the biggest obstacle to peace in this region is Iran.”
Trump on Thursday said Iranian authorities had been in contact to express their desire to pursue peace and to strongly back the new deal to end the war.
Iran has been more measured in its public response, voicing general support in a statement on Thursday for any agreement that ends the Gaza "genocide".
Booker argued that the Mideast armed movements backed by Tehran could yet scupper the progress toward peace.
“We need to end terrorism, we need to end this nightmare,” he said. “There must be a ceasefire in Gaza, the hostages must be released, and humanitarian aid must reach people in desperate need. The main obstacle to these goals are the terrorist organizations that act as Iran’s proxies.”
'Opportunity must not be lost'
If implemented, the Gaza deal could usher in the first sustained truce since the war began on October 7 2023, when an attack by Hamas-led fighters into Israel killed more than 1,200 people and triggered a devastating Israeli campaign that has since left over 67,000 Palestinians dead.
Booker said the actions of the Tehran-backed Palestinian militants had scotched hopes for a two-state solution - the formula the vast majority United Nations member states hope will resolve the conflict.
“All the hopes for a two-state solution and a lasting peace were destroyed by one of Iran’s proxies—Hamas,” he said. “They massacred civilians, kidnapped children, and brutalized women. It’s a horrific and heartbreaking reality that shows how much innocent blood has been shed because of Iran’s destructive policies.”
In an April 2025 speech, Booker called for a “unified American voice” supporting a non-nuclear, democratic Iran, while calling for a robust defense against Iran-backed armed groups in the region.
“The United States must stand with the Iranian people,” he said at the time, “but we must also defend ourselves and our allies from the regime’s terror network.”
Prospects were ripe for regional peace before the regional conflagration ignited by the Oct. 7 attack, Booker said, adding that the opening provided by the preliminary Gaza deal must be exploited.
“We need to get back to the conditions that existed before October 7—when it seemed, finally, that there was an opening for peace. That opportunity must not be lost again.”
