Israel’s talks with the Hamas terrorist organization will only be conducted under fire, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant vowed on Wednesday, five days after U.S. President Joe Biden launched a proposed deal offering an immediate “full and complete ceasefire.”
“We are in a process where we will continue and wear down the enemy. Any negotiations with the Hamas terrorist organization will only be conducted under fire,” Gallant stated in a video posted to X.
The defense minister spoke shortly after a flight over the Gaza Strip and the northern border with Lebanon in an Israeli Air Force F15 fighter jet.
“The strikes and the plumes of smoke where the IDF attacks are clearly visible to the eye, both in the Gaza Strip and in the north,” he said.
Biden announced his proposed hostages-for-ceasefire deal in a televised address on Friday. Calling it an Israeli proposal, the agreement laid out by the U.S. administration envisages a “permanent” end to hostilities and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.
“All of that and more would begin immediately,” he said. “During the six weeks of phase one, Israel and Hamas would negotiate the necessary arrangements to get to phase two, which is a permanent end to hostilities.”
Biden added that if the initial talks take longer than six weeks, the ceasefire would be extended “as long as negotiations continue.”
During a closed-door meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly told lawmakers he would “not describe the details of the deal,” adding, however, that Biden’s portrayal of Jerusalem’s negotiating position was “not accurate.”
“I am not willing to stop the war,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying. “We can stop the fighting for 42 days in order to return hostages, but we will not give up on total victory.”
Biden’s announcement had led to pushback within the Israeli coalition, with National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir on Monday suspending his role in the government until Netanyahu reveals the proposed terms.
In an interview with ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday, U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby stated that the Biden administration expects Israel to agree to the deal if Hamas greenlights it.
“We have every expectation that if Hamas agrees to the proposal—as was transmitted to them, an Israeli proposal—that Israel would say ‘Yes,'” Kirby said.
