From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, July 23, 2024
Meeting hostage families in US, Netanyahu says conditions for deal ‘coming together’
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
WASHINGTON — After landing in the US, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells the families of Israelis held hostage by Hamas that the conditions for a deal “are coming together, without a doubt.”
He says a potential deal to release hostages is coming together because of intense military pressure Israel is applying to Hamas.
“This is a good sign,” he continues, “and the other sign is that we are also seeing that the enemy’s spirit is starting to break.”
“We are seeing a certain change,” says Netanyahu, “and I think that this change will continue to get bigger.”
Sitting next to his wife Sara and government hostage pointman Gal Hirsch, Netanyahu tells the families that if Israel stands firm “we can reach a deal.”
“I say at the outset that this will be a process, unfortunately it’s not all at once, there will be stages,” he continues, “but I believe that we can move a deal forward and maintain the means of pressure that can bring about the release of the others.”
The meeting included 23 family members of hostages — 12 of whom are relatives of American citizens held by Hamas, freed hostage Noa Argamani and her father Yaakov, and two soldiers who fought in the Gaza Strip during the ongoing war against Hamas.
Netanyahu insists he is doing everything he can to bring back the hostages while protecting Israel’s very existence.
“In no circumstance am I willing to give up on victory over Hamas.” he emphasizes. “If we let up, we will be in danger from all of Iran’s evil axis.”
