From the Liveblog of
Friday, August 8, 2025
Hamas says Israel choosing to ‘sacrifice’ hostages with Gaza City takeover
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleNurit Yohanan is The Times of Israel's Palestinian and Arab world correspondent
Hamas says that Israel’s decision to approve a plan to take over Gaza City is proof that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government are disregarding the lives of the hostages, as they know that expanding the military operation “will lead to their sacrifice.”
The statement claims that the decision explains why Israel abruptly withdrew from hostage deal negotiations, which the terror group claims were “on the verge of reaching a ceasefire agreement.”
Israel and the US pulled their negotiating teams from Doha late last month after Hamas requested amendments to a partial ceasefire and hostage release deal that they found unacceptable.
Hamas demands that the United States and international courts stop Israel from carrying out its planned takeover.
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