Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas about this on Sunday There will be no ceasefire in Gaza without an accompanying agreement to release the hostages held by Palestinian militias since October 7.
Without the return of the hostages there will be no ceasefire
“Without the return of the hostages there will be no ceasefire.”. “We are ready to reach a release agreement, but we are not ready to give in to Hamas’ ‘excessive’ demands,” the prime minister said after a spokesman for the Palestinian movement called for a permanent ceasefire and Hamas’s immediate withdrawal. The withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza is an essential prerequisite before discussing the return of the hostages.
Netanyahu made these statements after meeting with his war cabinet Six months of conflict have passed in the Palestinian enclave and a Hamas delegation is traveling to Cairo, Egypt, this afternoon to hold new talks under international mediation.
“I want to make one thing clear: Israel is not the one preventing an agreement. Hamas is preventing an agreement.” Netanyahu said this in statements reported by Israeli media.
“Their extreme demands were aimed at ending the war while preserving their position to ensure their survival and rehabilitation. Giving in to Hamas’ demands would allow them to repeat the October 7 crimes again and again, as they promised.”, he suggested.
The prime minister insisted that the Israeli army was “one step away from victory in Gaza” after ensuring that “19 of the 24 Hamas battalions were eliminated.”
According to the Israeli army, the remaining battalions are based in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, home to hundreds of thousands of forcibly displaced people. The Prime Minister has assured that he is preparing the order to enter the city, but the United States, his great ally, has asked him for a concrete plan for the civilian population before lending its support to the operation.
Finally, and referring to the weekly protests demanding the calling of new elections and a quick agreement to release the hostages, Netanyahu laments the behavior of “an extreme and violent minority that is trying to drive the country into division.”
“Our enemies want nothing more. They want internal division and baseless hatred to stop us short of victory,” the prime minister declared, before ensuring that “an absolute majority of the (Israeli) people are united and must continue the fight until victory.” “and “condemns any manifestation of violence” during the marches.