Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Ssturday that Hamas rejected a deal that would have secured the release of approximately half of the remaining Israeli hostages held in Gaza. According to Netanyahu, the militant group conditioned the release on a permanent ceasefire and full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, terms he labeled as unacceptable.
“If we capitulate to the dictates of Hamas now, all the great achievements of the war will disappear,” Netanyahu said in a video statement, as reported by Xinhua News Agency.
He also dismissed any suggestion that Israel could accept such conditions temporarily and later resume operations, noting that the international community would not support such a maneuver.
The statement came shortly after Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, released a four-minute video featuring Israeli hostage Elkana Bohbot. In the video, Bohbot appears to speak with his family via landline, pleading for help:
“My health is not good. I am screaming for death. Please, do this for me,” he says in the closing moments of the video.
The timing of the video’s recording remains unclear. However, its emotional weight sparked immediate backlash inside Israel, prompting mass protests in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa, and Beersheba, where demonstrators demanded a swift resolution to secure the release of the hostages.
Meanwhile, conflicting narratives persist. While Netanyahu accuses Hamas of rejecting the terms, some Hamas leaders have publicly claimed to have agreed to a ceasefire deal, raising questions over which party is obstructing progress in negotiations.
Amid the ongoing political standoff, fighting continues. Over the weekend, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported killing more than 40 Hamas fighters during operations in Rafah, in southern Gaza.
The humanitarian and political stakes remain high, as the war approaches its seventh month with over 130 Israeli hostages still believed to be held in Gaza, according to Israeli estimates.
Sources:
- Statement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu via Xinhua News Agency
- Hostage video released by Al-Qassam Brigades (via international news coverage)
- Reports from Haaretz, The Times of Israel, and IDF official statements
- On-the-ground reporting from Tel Aviv and Jerusalem protest coverage
