RELEASE: Gottheimer Co-Leads Bipartisan House Intelligence Committee Trip to Israel

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, August 6, 2025, U.S. Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5) departed from Israel after co-leading a bipartisan House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence delegation trip with Committee Chairman Rick Crawford (AR-1) and Congressman Ronny Jackson (TX-13).

While in Israel, Gottheimer and the Members: 

• Visited an aid staging site near the border with Gaza, assessing ongoing efforts to surge humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.
• Met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Mossad Director David Barnea. 
• Met with U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and U.S. embassy officials.
• Met with hostage families, including the family of Evyatar David, who has been held hostage by Hamas for 670 days, starved, and forced to film Hamas propaganda videos.
• Toured Kibbutz Kfar Aza, which was attacked on October 7 by Hamas terrorists resulting in the deaths of over 60 residents and 19 taken hostage.
• Received a situational update from the Israel Defense Forces on military operations in Gaza. 
• Met with senior Palestinian Authority officials in Ramallah.

While visiting the Kerem Shalom crossing, the Members discussed the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s efforts to surge aid directly to civilians in Gaza while keeping it out of the hands of Hamas. More than 85% of UN convoys do not reach their destinations, with trucks being diverted by armed Hamas terrorists or overrun by civilians desperately seeking food. Hamas pocketed more than $500 million in stolen aid last year alone. Scaling up solutions to safely deliver aid directly into the hands of civilians is critical to improving the humanitarian situation on the ground.

Gottheimer participated in discussions with senior-level officials regarding:

• The ongoing efforts to bring every single hostage home safely and quickly.
• The ongoing war in Gaza and the urgent need to crush Hamas and build a future in Gaza free from Hamas control.
• The importance of surging humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza through partners like the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation to ensure that aid stays out of the hands of Hamas terrorists.
• The fight against Iran, and the critical need to continue applying maximum pressure following U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
• The threat posed by Iranian-backed terrorist proxies in Gaza and the Middle East, including Hamas, Hezbollah, PIJ, and Houthis.
• Hamas terrorists’ continued use of innocent Palestinians as human shields.
• The critical importance of maintaining strong, bipartisan support for the U.S.-Israel relationship.

“Since October 7, I have been clear: we must bring home every hostage, surge humanitarian aid to innocent civilians, and end Hamas’ reign of terror in Gaza,” said Congressman Josh Gottheimer (NJ-5), a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. “My trip to Israel was vital to understanding exactly what needs to be done to accomplish these goals and to protect America and our allies from terror.”

Gottheimer continued, “Given the situation, it was extremely important to meet with Prime Minister Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials, Ambassador Huckabee, and family members of hostages still in Gaza. It was also critical to visit an aid staging location at the Kerem Shalom border crossing and a GHF coordination site, which gave me a better understanding of efforts to surge aid into Gaza. We must ensure aid is able to swiftly reach Gazans in need, not Hamas terrorists, who continue to steal food from innocent Palestinians. With so much misinformation, there is no better way to understand the situation than to see it firsthand. By promoting security and stability in the Middle East, the United States will improve our own national security.”

Below: Reps. Gottheimer, Crawford, and Jackson visit the Kerem Shalom humanitarian aid staging site on the border with Gaza.