Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back Monday against calls to soften his demands for a cease-fire with Hamas after six hostages were found slain in southern Gaza.
"No one is more committed to freeing the hostages than me. ... No one will preach to me on this issue," Netanyahu said, according to The Associated Press.
Among the sticking points in negotiations is Netanyahu's push for Israel to retain control of the Philadelphi Corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border. Israel claims Hamas uses tunnels along the corridor to smuggle weapons into Gaza. Egypt and Hamas deny the claims.
On Sunday, hundreds of thousands of Israelis marched in the streets to mourn the news that the bodies of six slain hostages were found in southern Gaza.
At a televised press conference on Monday, Netanyahu said he sought forgiveness for failing to save the slain hostages.
"I ask for your forgiveness for not bringing them back alive," he said. "We were close, but we didn't succeed. Hamas will pay a very heavy price for this."
Late Monday, several thousand demonstrators gathered outside Netanyahu's private home in central Jerusalem, chanting, "Deal. Now."
Earlier Monday, a general workers' strike disrupted Israel as the largest Israeli trade union and businesses sought to pressure the government to reach a cease-fire deal with Hamas to end fighting in Gaza as the war nears the 11-month mark.
Banks, public transit, hospitals, stores and the country's main airport were either shuttered or open in limited ways. In some sectors, the strike's effects were less noticeable.
The work disruption ended after eight hours, in midafternoon, when a court ruled that the Histadrut union had not given enough notice for the protest.
Advocates for the hostages and critics of Netanyahu argued that a cease-fire to halt the war in Gaza could have saved the hostages' lives. But Netanyahu's partners in the Israeli government's ruling coalition mostly oppose a compromise with Hamas.
Netanyahu has refused to agree to a cease-fire deal calling for an Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza that would lead to a permanent halt to the fighting — for fear that Hamas could rearm itself and endanger Israel's long-term security.
Hamas has accused Israel of dragging out negotiations by issuing new demands, including that Israel remain in control of the Philadelphi corridor and a second corridor running across Gaza.
Hamas has held to the broad agreements of a three-phase plan put forth by the Biden administration in July: Hamas would release all hostages in return for an end to the war, a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and the release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners.
In Washington, U.S. President Joe Biden rebuked Netanyahu for his handling of the hostage situation and cease-fire negotiations.
As he arrived back at the White House after a vacation, Biden was asked whether he thought the Israeli leader was doing enough to free the 100 or so remaining hostages, a third of whom Israel believes are dead. Biden responded simply, "No," but said he would have more to say after meeting with his security advisers.
Biden, who has closely followed the fate of the hostages, said Sunday he was "devastated and outraged" by the discovery of more dead captives.
"Hamas leaders will pay for these crimes. And we will keep working around the clock for a deal to secure the release of the remaining hostages," he said in a statement.
Thousands of people gathered Monday at a large cemetery in Jerusalem for the funeral of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a dual Israeli American citizen who was one of the six hostages found dead Saturday. Israeli President Isaac Herzog expressed remorse in a eulogy that Israel had failed to protect Goldberg-Polin from the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel or to bring him home alive.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, said she and her husband, Doug Emhoff, spoke Sunday with Goldberg-Polin's parents, Jon and Rachel, to express their condolences.
"My heart breaks for their pain and anguish," Harris said. "I told them: As they mourn this terrible loss, they are not alone. Our nation mourns with them."
The hostages were apparently shot to death by the militants just as troops were zeroing in on their location in Gaza. Israel's foreign ministry said early Monday a forensic examination showed the hostages were killed by gunshots at close range, and within 48-72 hours before the examination.
Hamas militants killed about 1,200 people and captured about 250 hostages during the October 7 attack on southern Israel. The Israeli counteroffensive has killed nearly 41,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them women and children, according to Gaza health officials, while the Israeli military says the death toll includes several thousand Hamas combatants.
Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
