In the wake of Secretary of State John Kerry’s speech last week, in which he claimed that Israel’s presence in Judea, Samaria and eastern Jerusalem is an “obstacle to peace”, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee visited the Muslim Quarter of Jerusalem in order to send Kerry a message that Israel is, indeed, both a Jewish and Democratic state.

“John Kerry made a most irrational speech in the last week of the year,” Huckabee told Arutz Sheva.

“We’re here in the first week of a new year to remind the world that Yerushalayim is one city,” he added, insisting on pronouncing the name of Israel’s capital in Hebrew.

“It’s not a divided city, never has been, it’s been the capital of only one people in all of its history. It’s been the capital of the Jewish people,” stressed Hucakbee. “For anyone to suggest that it ought to be carved up, it would almost be like taking the baby before Solomon again. I think that wisdom prevailed then that you don’t divide the baby in half. And wisdom needs to prevail now. You don’t divide Yerushalayim in many pieces.”

Huckabee stressed that “the Israelis have always protected the holy sites and given respect to all of the holy sites of [all religions]. Can you imagine that that would be true in Tehran? Can you name any church or synagogue in Tehran that has been respected and protected by the radical government of Iran? No, because there isn’t one.”

Kerry’s statement that Israel can’t be both a democratic and a Jewish state was “foolish”, said Huckabee, adding, “Mr. Kerry, it is both. And it will always be both. It’s a Jewish state and it has been for 4,000 years, and it’s a democracy and he only needs to come and see how people here in this country not only elect their officials, but how they scream at them. The greatest sign of freedom of speech is that you can criticize you government and not be put in jail or killed for it.”

Huckabee’s visit to Jerusalem was organized by Dr. Joe Frager, Ateret Cohanim, Dr. Paul Brody, Odeleya Jacobs and the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce.