Israel needs the discharge of hostages, however is not going to “give up” to the Palestinian militant group, the prime minister mentioned
Israel is keen to pause its army offensive in Gaza if Hamas releases all of the surviving hostages kidnapped final October, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu introduced on Sunday, whereas rejecting calls for for a withdrawal of IDF forces.
“Israel is not going to comply with Hamas’s calls for, which imply give up, and can proceed the preventing till all its targets are achieved”, the prime minister mentioned.
Throughout final yr’s October 7 assault on Israeli territories close to Gaza, Hamas militants killed some 1,200 individuals and took one other 250 hostage. Since then, a variety of the captives have been launched however round 130 are nonetheless being held within the Palestinian enclave.
Final week, Israel formally despatched Hamas a ceasefire proposal which suggests a short lived cessation of hostilities to facilitate an change of a number of dozen hostages for Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails.
The proposal has been described as “terribly beneficiant” by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who has urged Hamas to “resolve shortly” and “make the proper determination.”
Hamas, in the meantime, has demanded a everlasting ceasefire and the withdrawal of all Israeli troops from the besieged Palestinian enclave.
Israel will ship troops into the Gaza’s metropolis of Rafah, no matter whether or not it reaches a ceasefire and hostage-release cope with Hamas, Netanyahu mentioned on Tuesday.
Located at Gaza’s southern border with Egypt, Rafah is at present house to an estimated 1.4 million Palestinians who’ve fled the northern reaches of the enclave. Since October, Israel has carried out common airstrikes in Rafah towards what it claims are Hamas targets, and Netanyahu has threatened for months to launch a floor invasion of the town, regardless of objections from the US and UN.
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