Robert O'Brien
Robert O'BrienReuters

Tzur Goldin, brother of IDF soldier Hadar Goldin whose body has been held by Hamas in Gaza since 2014, welcomed the appointment of Robert O’Brien as the new US National Security Advisor.

“In name of my family, I send deep respect to Ambassador Robert C. O’Brien newly appointed National Security Advisor!” Goldin wrote on Twitter.

“After our recent round of meetings we believe he is the right man in the right place, and we trust him to bear good tidings to the mission to bring my brother home,” he added.

US President Donald Trump announced earlier on Wednesday that O’Brien would replace John Bolton, who was dismissed last week over differences with the President on Afghanistan and Iran.

In 2005, O’Brien was a member of the US team to the United Nations and called out the world body for singling out Palestinian Arabs for special consideration and Israel for condemnation.

A lawyer and a longtime veteran of the Republican Party’s foreign policy establishment, O’Brien helped negotiate the release of Americans held in North Korea and Turkey. He also observed proceedings in Sweden in the case of A$AP Rocky, a rapper charged with assault in that country.

Along with his UN post, he served in a number of foreign policy posts in the George W. Bush administration.