From the Liveblog of
Sunday, June 23, 2024
Netanyahu says he’ll agree to a pause in fighting for the return of some hostages, but war won’t end until Hamas is destroyed
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tells Channel 14 that Israel is prepared to pause fighting in Gaza for a partial deal in exchange for the return of a number of hostages held by Hamas, but insists that the war will not end until Hamas is destroyed.
Asked whether he is prepared to reach an agreement with Hamas after the high-intensity phase of the conflict is over that would constitute a commitment to end the war, Netanyahu says: “No. I’m not prepared to end the war and leave Hamas in place. I am prepared to do a partial deal, that’s no secret, that would return some of the people to us,” he says. “But we are obligated to continue the fighting after a pause in order to complete our goal of destroying Hamas. I’m not prepared to give up on that.”
The Times of Israel Community.