JERUSALEM, Israel – An Israeli team heads to Qatar today for more talks on a hostage deal as intense fighting continues in Gaza and along the northern border. Hezbollah has kept up its rocket attacks and suicide drones against northern Israel and Israel is striking back.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant says Israel is planning to ramp up its firepower in the north, regardless of the situation in Gaza.
“We will continue the fire and we will do so independently from the south, until we achieve our goals,” he stated. “The goal is simple: to withdraw Hezbollah to where it should be, either via a [diplomatic] agreement, or we will do it by force."
The U.S. says an outline is in place for a new hostage deal. It reportedly includes releasing 30-40 Israelis in exchange for a six-week pause in fighting and the release of a few hundred Palestinian prisoners in a first phase.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered that if Hamas will back down from its “delusional claims,” there would be progress toward a hostage deal. “Hamas started out with just crazy demands,” he insisted. “It’s too soon to say if they’ve abandoned them. If they come down to a reasonable situation, then yes, we will have a hostage deal.”
UNRWA's Ties to Palestinian Terrorism
In Geneva, hostage family member Ayelet Samerano is addressing the “Future Beyond UNRWA” summit on Monday. Her 21-year-old son Yonatan’s lifeless body was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists, including a UNRWA social worker, Faisal Ali Mussalem al-Naami, and taken to Gaza on October 7th.
The summit follows revelations that at least 12 UNRWA workers took part in the attack last October, and more than 1,200 UNRWA staff belong to Hamas or Islamic Jihad.
Another hostage, Sergeant Oz Daniel, served on the border and was kidnapped with his tank crew on October 7th. He was murdered in captivity and Hamas still holds his body. Nevertheless, his family is holding his funeral Monday.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh announced the resignation of his government amid U.S. pressure to shake up Palestinian leadership under 88-year-old president Mahmoud Abbas.
Netanyahu Says End in Sight - Gives War Timeline for 'Total Victory'
In an interview with CBS News’s Face the Nation, Netanyahu said Israel must achieve complete victory in Gaza, including the release of the hostages, destroying Hamas, and ensuring no future threat from Gaza.
“Unless we have total victory, we can’t have peace,” Netanyahu declared. “We can’t leave Hamas in place. We can’t leave a quarter of Hamas battalions in Rafah and say well that’s fine. They’ll be there. That’s like saying a quarter of ISIS will be left intact with a defined territory, because you know they’ll reconstitute themselves immediately.”
Netanyahu says victory is within reach and Israel must deal with the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
“Once we begin the Rafah operation, the intense phase of the fighting is weeks away from completion, not months, weeks away from completion…. We can’t leave the last Hamas stronghold without taking care of it,” he explained.
The Prime Minister's office this morning reported that the IDF has submitted to the war cabinet a plan for the evacuation of the Gazan population (like Rafah) from conflict areas, the execution of upcoming operations, and the provision of humanitarian aid to Gaza to inhibit looting.
Netanyahu emphasized Israel's position, stating, "We are fighting a war that was forced upon us by Hamas, and we cannot just give in because Hamas hides behind its own civilians."
He then posed a rhetorical question, drawing a parallel to the United States: "What would America do, if faced with the equivalent of twenty 9/11’s, – 50,000 Americans slaughtered in one day, 10,000 Americans including mothers and children held hostage? You'd be doing a hell of a lot more."
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