“Until the war aims are achieved” – Netanyahu says any agreement must allow Israel to continue fighting

From the editors of the Palestine Chronicle

The Israeli prime minister said any agreement would allow Tel Aviv to resume fighting “until its war aims are achieved.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that a ceasefire plan for Gaza supported by US President Joe Biden would allow the hostages to be released “without harming the other objectives of the war”.

Netanyahu’s office issued a statement saying that his refusal to stop the Gaza offensive was “what brought Hamas back to the negotiating table.”

He claimed that “the framework agreed by Israel and welcomed by President Biden will enable Israel to release hostages without jeopardizing the other objectives of the war.”

The Israeli prime minister added that any agreement would allow Tel Aviv to resume fighting “until its war aims are achieved.”

He also stressed that “it will not be possible to smuggle weapons to Hamas across the Gaza-Egypt border” and promised that “Israel will maximize the number of live hostages released from Hamas captivity.”

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Biden’s proposal

In May, Biden mentioned that Israel had proposed a three-phase plan to end hostilities in the Gaza Strip and secure the release of the hostages.

This plan includes a ceasefire, a prisoner exchange and the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.

Israeli broadcaster Channel 13 reported, citing Mossad sources, that Israeli officials were optimistic that an agreement could be reached to return Israeli prisoners from Gaza.

According to these sources, Israel considers the current moment to be “favorable” for negotiations with Hamas, and security authorities are advising political leaders to take advantage of it.

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid questioned Netanyahu’s statement, asking: “What is the use of these provocative statements when we are at a critical moment in the negotiations on which the lives of the prisoners depend?”

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Shocking death toll

Israel, which is currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against the Palestinians, has been waging a devastating war against Gaza since October 7.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry In Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip, which began on October 7, 38,098 Palestinians were killed and 87,705 injured.

In addition, at least 11,000 people are missing and are believed to be dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Gaza Strip.

According to Israel, 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the flood relief operation in Al-Aqsa on October 7. Israeli media reported that many Israelis were killed by friendly fire that day.

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Palestinian and international organizations say the majority of the dead and injured are women and children.

The Israeli war led to an acute famine, especially in the north of the Gaza Strip, and caused the deaths of many Palestinians, especially children.

The Israeli aggression also resulted in the forced displacement of nearly two million people from across the Gaza Strip. The vast majority of those displaced were forced to the densely populated southern city of Rafah, near the Egyptian border. It was the largest mass exodus from Palestine since the Nakba of 1948.

As the war progressed, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians began to move from the south to central Gaza in search of safety.

(PC, Anadolu, AJA)