Jared Kushner, former White House adviser and current envoy under President Donald Trump, rejected claims that Israel’s campaign in Gaza amounted to genocide, even as he described the devastation as resembling the aftermath of a nuclear blast.

The comments were made during an extended 60 Minutes interview aired on CBS, where Kushner and fellow envoy Steve Witkoff discussed recent ceasefire negotiations and U.S. diplomatic outreach in the broader Middle East.

Kushner Describes Gaza Devastation

Speaking to interviewer Leslie Stahl, Kushner recalled visiting Gaza following the ceasefire and said the level of destruction was catastrophic.

“It looked almost like a nuclear bomb had been set off in that area” he said.

When asked directly whether the scale of the Israeli offensive constituted genocide, Kushner replied simply,

“No. Absolutely not. There was a war being fought.”

President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner

Witkoff Reveals U.S. Contacts With Iran, Peace Efforts in Africa

Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy and business associate, used the interview to outline new U.S.-led diplomatic initiatives beyond Gaza.

“We’re getting calls from the Iranians” Witkoff said.

“We’re there to hopefully have a long-term diplomatic solution with Iran.”

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff

He added that Washington is also working to finalize peace negotiations between Algeria and Morocco, expressing optimism that “there’s going to be a peace deal there in the next, in my view, 60 days.”