Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday harshly criticized an Israeli TV news report accusing him of “torpedoing” a potential ceasefire deal with Hamas, saying it echoed the terror group’s propaganda.
“The fact that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has acceded to every American proposal for releasing the hostages despite the ultimatum from elements in the coalition completely refutes the claim that he has torpedoed any deal whatsoever due to political considerations,” his office said in a statement in response to the Channel 12 report.
The PMO provided a timeline of Netanyahu’s actions, starting with a proposal sent to mediators on April 27 which U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called “very generous.”
On May 31, the premier agreed to U.S. President Joe Biden’s ceasefire proposal, and then on Aug. 16, he agreed to the American “final bridging proposal,” according to the statement.
The statement points out that on June 12, Blinken confirmed that Jerusalem had agreed to the proposal, while Hamas rejected it.
The PMO pointed to other similar statements from U.S. officials, including Deputy CIA Director David S. Cohen, who said on Aug. 28 that Israel was showing seriousness in the negotiations and that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar would have to respond.
On Sept. 9, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East McGurk said that Hamas was to blame for the lack of a deal. On the same day, Israel’s National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz said, “Hamas has not accepted the framework for months and the world is expected to back Israel.”
“The false claims in the media against Prime Minister Netanyahu echo the propaganda of the Hamas terrorist organization and invert reality. Prime Minister Netanyahu has already brought about the release of 154 hostages, 117 of whom are alive, and will continue to utilize all means to release the hostages,” the PMO said.
“Whoever wants to assist in the effort to release our hostages needs to pressure the murderer Sinwar and not the Prime Minister of Israel,” the statement concluded.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a visit to Egypt on Wednesday that a ceasefire deal with Hamas is the “best chance” to restore stability in the Middle East.
“We all know that a ceasefire is the best chance to tackle the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, to address risks to regional stability,” Blinken told reporters at a joint press conference in Cairo, speaking alongside Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty.
Washington’s top diplomat said the sides had agreed on 15 out of 18 paragraphs of the agreement, but that outstanding issues needed to be resolved.
Abdelatty stressed that Cairo, which is one of the mediators, remains of the opinion that the Israel Defense Forces must withdraw from the Gaza-Egypt border and that Palestinians should manage the Rafah Crossing.
Netanyahu has said that Jerusalem might consider a withdrawal of troops from the border area as part of a hostage deal with Hamas, but only if a viable alternative can be found to prevent the terrorist organization from rearming itself through tunnels.
Washington is still working with Egypt and Qatar to come up with a revised ceasefire deal, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Monday.
No timetable was presented for a new draft agreement, but Miller said the United States was “working expeditiously to try to develop that proposal.”
