Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected a proposal Sunday by Hamas militants to end the war in Gaza that now is in its fourth month.
“In exchange for the release of our hostages,” the Israeli leader said in a statement, “Hamas demands the end of the war, the withdrawal of our forces from Gaza, the release of all the murderers and rapists. And leaving Hamas intact." "I reject outright the terms of surrender of the monsters of Hamas," Netanyahu said.
Hamas on Sunday defended its October 7 terror attack on Israel but admitted to "faults" and called for an end to "Israeli aggression" in Gaza.
In its first public report on the attack that began the war, the militant group said it was a “necessary step" against Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories, and a way to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners.
In late November, in a deal brokered by the United States, Qatar and Egypt, more than 100 of the estimated 240 hostages who were taken captive to Gaza during the October 7 attack by Hamas militants on southern Israel, were freed in exchange for the release of 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
Since that deal ended, Netanyahu has faced mounting pressure from within Israel and from some world leaders to secure the release of the 136 hostages who remain in captivity, perhaps two dozen of whom have died or been killed.
Some world leaders, but not U.S. President Joe Biden, have called for an immediate cease-fire in the fighting. About 1,200 Israelis were killed in the initial attack, and, according to Hamas health officials, more than 25,000 in Gaza during Israel’s counteroffensive, including civilians and militants.
Netanyahu in recent days has also taken a strong position against Palestinian statehood to stabilize the volatile Mideast and prevent the spread of the Israel-Hamas war throughout the region. Biden and other American officials have called for Palestinian statehood.
"I will not compromise on full Israeli security control of all territory west of the Jordan River," he said.
Biden on Friday said he spoke with Netanyahu about possible solutions for the creation of an independent Palestinian state that could include a nonmilitarized government.
Netanyahu said that he has faced down "international and internal pressures" to change his position on Palestinian statehood.
"My insistence is what prevented for years the establishment of a Palestinian state that would have posed an existential danger to Israel," Netanyahu said.
British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps told Sky News Sunday that it is “disappointing” to hear of Netanyahu’s opposition to a Palestinian state at the end of the Israel-Hamas war.
“Unless you pursue a two-state solution, I really don’t see that there is another solution,” Shapps said.
Discussing his administration's position Friday, Biden said, “There are a number of types of two-state solutions.” Asked if a two-state solution was impossible with Netanyahu in office, Biden replied, “No, it’s not.”
Biden said he had spoken with Netanyahu on Friday, the first call the White House had in nearly a month with the Israeli leader.
Netanyahu’s office said, "In his conversation with President Biden, Prime Minister Netanyahu reiterated his policy that after Hamas is destroyed Israel must retain security control over Gaza to ensure that Gaza will no longer pose a threat to Israel, a requirement that contradicts the demand for Palestinian sovereignty."
Netanyahu is increasingly facing conflicting pressures at home.
Relatives of hostages held by Hamas militants in Gaza protested outside his home Saturday, demanding his government take decisive steps to secure the release of their family members. They say they fear that escalating military activity further endangers the captives' lives.
Meanwhile, a divide over the direction of the war, now in its fourth month, is growing inside the Israeli Cabinet.
Former Israeli army chief Gadi Eisenkot, a member of the War Cabinet has said a cease-fire is the only way to secure the hostages’ release, a comment that implied criticism of Israel's current strategy not to let up on Israel’s war on Hamas militants until their destruction.
Netanyahu also is under heat from members of his right-wing governing coalition who want an all-out war against Hamas, while the U.S., Israel’s main ally, is calling for restraint in Gaza to protect civilian lives.
The Israeli leader has said he will push for “complete victory” against Hamas but has not outlined how he would achieve it.
Critics have accused him of preventing a Cabinet-level debate about a post-war scenario for Gaza. They say Netanyahu is stalling to prevent conflict within his coalition.
The Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry said Sunday the Gaza death toll is at 25,102, with about 70% of the victims being women and children. Health officials said 62,681 people have been wounded.
In the past 24 hours, the ministry said 178 Palestinians have been killed and 293 injured.
Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
