Republican Lawmaker Declares 'Nuking Gaza Would Be Terrible' Because the 'Fallout Would Drift Into Israel'

Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) said Monday that it would be "terrible" to drop a nuclear bomb on Gaza, because the widespread devastation would also impact Israel.

Appearing on CNN, Fine was questioned about recent remarks where he seemed to advocate for using a nuclear weapon to defeat Palestinians. Asked directly if he supported a nuclear strike on Gaza, Fine answered, "Of course not."

"Nuking Gaza would be a terrible idea—the fallout would drift into Israel," Fine said. "It would kill the hostages."

Last month, Fine appeared on Fox News following the fatal shooting of two Israeli-embassy staff members in Washington D.C. He compared Israel's conflict with Palestine to WWII, referencing the use of nuclear weapons in Japan, insisting negotiation wasn't an option and force was necessary to secure unconditional surrender.

"It needs to be the same here. There is something deeply wrong with this culture and it needs to be defeated," he told Fox News in May.

Fine clarified his position on CNN. "What I was saying is that we didn't negotiate with evil in WWII. We defeated the Germans, we defeated the Japanese — using any means that were necessary," Fine said. "The same needs to be done in Gaza."

Fine went on to defend Israeli attacks on Gaza, dismissing concern regarding civilian casualties. "Israel can not live next to a country that a huge percentage of the people wish to destroy it all of the time," he said.

"I think war is a messy thing," Fine continued. "My point is, we didn't sit down and go, 'Oh no, civilians might die, let's not get Japan to surrender.' I believe the Palestinianism in Gaza is on a level of evil we saw in Japan and we saw in Germany back in WWII."

Earlier this month, the Daytona Beach News-Journal questioned Fine about the same comments, asking if he supports using nuclear weapons in Gaza.

"It shows the sophistication of the Muslim-terror media that they are able to convince people like you to interpret (it that way)," he said. "Now I recognize that half of people in Gaza are married to their cousins, so you're going to find a lot of people with mental defects. But you've got to have a mental defect to interpret the comment that way."

Fine has been criticized for anti-Muslim rhetoric. He has frequently referred to the keffiyeh, a traditional headdress worn by men in parts of the Middle East, as a "terrorist rag," and called for the deportation of "Muslim Terror Raggies." Fine referred to demonstrators seeking the release of Mahmoud Khalil as "Muslim terrorists," and replied to concern over starvation in Gaza with the hashtag "StarveAway." He has repeatedly used the hashtag "MuslimProblem," and said, "It is high time to deal with this fundamentally broken and dangerous culture."

On X, users condemned Fine's comments on CNN as "advocating for genocide."

Fine has not responded to backlash to Monday's comments, but has previously denied that he is anti-Muslim. "I consider myself anti-Muslim-terrorist," he told the Daytona Beach News-Journal. "Unfortunately, terrorism views are quite prevalent among Muslims."