Benjamin Netanyahu
“This war had three goals: The destruction of Hamas, the return of the hostages and making sure that Gaza does not pose a threat to Israel. The deal you are now looking at leaves us without these goals,” MK Ohad Tal told JNS.
Israel cannot accept a situation in which the terror group regains control of the Gaza Strip, said the prime minister.
“If we do not defend ourselves, nobody will defend us,” said the premier.
“We will do what is necessary to win and overcome our enemies, including in Rafah,” said the premier.
The terrorist group reportedly reacted negatively to the latest offer, which U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said included “very important compromises” by Israel.
The prime minister reiterates that a “permanent ceasefire” will not happen before Hamas is destroyed in Gaza.
The top U.S. diplomat told Israel’s president earlier in the day that Hamas is solely responsible for the lack of an agreement.
“Branding Israel’s leaders and soldiers as war criminals will pour jet fuel on the fires of antisemitism, those fires that are already raging on the campuses of America and across capitals around the world.”
Asked by Time magazine whether he believes Netanyahu should resign from office, Trump noted he “had a bad experience with Bibi” in 2020.
“The possibility that they will issue arrest warrants ... is a scandal of historical magnitude,” said the Israeli premier.
Netanyahu met with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after the latter threatened to withdraw his party from the coalition.
“The notion that we will stop the war before achieving all of its goals is out of the question,” said the premier.
