Israel expressed concerns to the Trump administration after a media blitz by Adam Boehler, the special envoy for hostage affairs, defending his recent talks with Hamas on Sunday, Hebrew media outlets reported.

Jerusalem asked Washington for clarifications after Boehler gave a series of interviews to American and Israeli media following criticism of the direct negotiations with the terrorist group. 

After Israeli officials expressed their concerns, the Trump administration reportedly responded that the talks with Hamas would not happen again – though Boehler told CNN: “You never know. Sometimes, you’re in the area and you drop by.”

When Israeli Channel 13 reporter Neria Kraus asked Boehler about his reportedly “tough conversation” on the matter with Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, who is leading the Israeli negotiating team, the Trump envoy chuckled and said, “I don’t really care about that that much.”

Asked by Jake Tapper on CNN, “Do you understand why [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, Dermer, others might be upset?” Boehler answered that he did, but “at the same time, we’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel. We have specific interests at play.”

Boehler said it “feels a bit odd,” and that Hamas members are “not so good people,”  when asked by Tapper what it was like to meet with “antisemitic murderers.” But at the same time, Boehler said that Israeli concerns are borne out of the possibility that Boehler would meet them and think “they don’t have horns growing out of their head … They’re actually pretty nice guys.” 

After the complaints from Jerusalem, Boehler clarified his “pretty nice guys” remark, writing on X: “I want to be clear as some have misinterpreted. Hamas is a terrorist organization that has murdered thousands of innocent people. They are by definition bad people. And as POTUS has said, not a single Hamas member will be safe if Hamas doesn’t release all hostages immediately.” 

Speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” Boehler said negotiators had “very productive talks” and that Hamas “provided some very interesting views.” He posited that Hamas saw “a long-term truce where we forgive prisoners, where they would be disarmed, a truce where they would not be part of the political policy, and a truce where we would ensure that they are in a place where they can’t hurt Israel.”

Boehler also used language equating Israeli hostages, most of whom were taken from their homes or a music festival, to Palestinian prisoners detained due to security offenses and, in some cases, convicted on multiple counts of murder. 

On Channel 13, Boehler criticized Israel for “exchanging massive amounts of hostages” in reference to the number of Palestinian prisoners Israel has freed for each hostage. 

On Channel 11 and in The Jerusalem Post, Boehler referred to the potential to free more hostages as prisoner exchanges.

The equivalence Boehler drew was disturbing to Israeli officials, Jewish Insider has learned.

While the Israeli government has not commented publicly on Boehler’s latest remarks, Knesset Law, Constitution and Justice Committee chairman Simcha Rothman, a close confidant of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, criticized Boehler.

“Whoever is quoting what Hamas says and negotiating with Hamas directly is making a huge mistake that endangers the hostages,” Rothman said. “I’m not arguing about the importance of saving hostages and not about the need to free them all … I think Adam Boehler and anyone who is negotiating with Hamas is doing significant damage to [the effort to] return the hostages.”

Danielle Cohen contributed to this report.

Adam Boehler, the special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, said on Sunday that recent direct talks between the U.S. and Hamas on continuing the cease-fire and hostage-release deal with Israel were “very productive.”

Speaking on “Fox News Sunday,” Boehler said negotiators had “very productive talks” and that Hamas “provided some very interesting views.”

Boehler said, in addition to discussing the release of hostages, the parties “discussed what the end [of the war] might look like” and Hamas “did orient toward a long-term truce … where they would be disarmed, a truce where they would not be part of the political policy, and a truce where we would ensure that they are in a place where they can’t hurt Israel.”

“Those kinds of dialogues are very important to the president because, as he constantly says, he doesn’t want war,” Boehler continued. “War is a last resort. He wants a peaceful world.”

Boehler confirmed that he had spoken with Ron Dermer, Israel’s minister of strategic affairs who is leading Jerusalem in hostage negotiations, who “raised some concerns … And quite frankly it’s totally fair for Israel to have concerns if we’re having direct contacts with Hamas.” But, Boehler said, he believed he was able to “put [Dermer] at ease” and affirmed, “There’s no question in my mind that our greatest ally is Israel.”

On a more hawkish note, Boehler also appeared to indicate that the U.S. would get behind partnering with Israel to attack Iran’s nuclear program. Making the point that Trump would execute on his threats, noting the first Trump administration’s killing of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani in his first term, Boehler said, “It’s not so hard for us to partner with Israel and take out that nuclear capability, which we probably should do.”

Addressing reports that the Israelis are concerned that the U.S. is only interested in returning the remaining American hostages, Boehler emphasized that the recent negotiations were focused on all of the hostages, regardless of nationality: “My job is to get all hostages home because the job was given to me by the president. I take my orders from the president of the United States.”

Appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday morning, Boehler told host Jake Tapper that “Israel has done a wonderful, masterful job eliminating Hamas, Hezbollah, a number of other enemies … that makes things possible that weren’t possible before. And I think you could see something like a long-term truce, where we forgive prisoners, where Hamas lays down their arms … I think it’s a reality. It’s real close.”

Asked if he has plans to sit down with Hamas again, Boehler said, “You never know. Sometimes, you’re in the area and you drop by.”

Tapper questioned Boehler: “Do you understand why [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, Dermer, others might be upset?” Boehler answered that he does understand, but “at the same time, we’re the United States. We’re not an agent of Israel. We have specific interests at play.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), appearing on “Fox News Sunday” after Boehler, responded to Trump’s desire to restart negotiations with Iran on their nuclear program: “Here’s what a good deal will look like to me. No more enrichment for Iran. Take all the highly enriched uranium out of Iran. I’m willing to buy it from them and allow them to have nuclear power where fuel rods are provided by either Russia, China, or some international group,” Graham said.

“If you want to negotiate with Iran,” Graham continued, “you need to have an endgame where they have no nuclear capability to make a bomb when it’s over, and you should put them on the clock.”