Speaking to the pan-European Euronews network, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu strikes a careful tone about a possible hostage deal, saying only that “it is possible” that Hamas will agree to release the hostages it is holding in Gaza.
“If it doesn’t happen, what President Trump has said is that he will back Israel completely in acting forcefully against Hamas,” warns Netanyahu, adding, “Let’s hope that we can finish it the easy way and not the hard way.”
“Now the onus is on Hamas,” says Netanyahu.
After the release of hostages, the demilitarization of Gaza and disarming of Hamas “will be negotiated,” Netanyahu says.
Europe has “essentially become irrelevant” to the effort to free the hostages and end the war in Gaza, says Netanyahu.
“Europe has been absent because Europe has basically caved to Palestinian terrorism, to radical Islamist minorities in their midst,” he says of the countries that recognized a Palestinian state last month.
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