Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday, on the last day of the United States, that Hamas will only see the end of the War in the Gaza Strip when terrorists depuse their weapons, leave power and Gaza is demilitarized.
“To achieve this (the permanent ceasefire), it is necessary to do so under the minimum conditions we established: Hamas testifies the weapons, Gaza is demilitarized and Hamas ceases to have government and military capacity,” said Netanyahu, reinforcing: “If not reached by negotiations in 60 days, we will reach it in other ways, using force.”
The proposal on the table in Doha provides for a 60-day truce, during which Hamas and Israel should negotiate their continuity in a permanent ceasefire. The document in this plan establishes that if the parties do not reach an agreement on the “next day” to the truce, it may be extended until this agreement is reached.
“We told us ‘you will not go back to war’ after the first ceasefire agreement. We’ve come back. We said ‘you will not fight again’ after the second ceasefire. We’ll be back. ‘You will not fight again’ after the third ceasefire. Do you want me to continue?” Netanyahu in a video statement shortly before embarking back to Israel.
The Israeli Premier ensures that the duration of the offensive in Gaza against Hamas is due to the fact that there are still “thousands of weapons combatants” at the Palestinian enclave.
“We have prepared and finally we are performing the military operation that is the brightest in our history, among the brightest, no doubt that the whole world is waiting,” he added.
Netanyahu also said that his government seeks to maximize the release of hostages in Gaza “in the best possible way”, but “not everything” is in his hands, attributing responsibility for disagreements in the negotiations to Hamas.
Similarly, he stated that he defends the current proposal, according to which Hamas would free ten live Israeli hostages and 18 others killed during those 60 days of truce, an idea that terrorists also accept. In Gaza, there are 50 hostages left, which are believed to be still alive.
