Netanyahu insists on destroying Hamas as part of the plan to end the war | The Basque Journal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cooled hopes for peace in Gaza this Saturday by insisting on the “destruction” of the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas as an essential part of the Israeli plan, presented on Friday by US President Joe Biden, to put an end to war.

“The conditions have not changed: the destruction of Hamas’s military and government capabilities, the release of all hostages and the guarantee that the Strip no longer poses a threat to Israel,” the Israeli leader said in a statement.

“Under the proposal, Israel will continue to insist that these conditions be met before a permanent ceasefire is established,” he added. “The idea that Israel will agree to a permanent ceasefire before these conditions are met has no meaning.” meaning,” Netanyahu insisted.

Biden announced on Friday that Israel proposed a new roadmap toward a complete ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. He explained that the three-stage Israeli offer would begin with a six-week phase in which Israeli forces would withdraw from all populated areas. from Gaza.

It would also mean the “release of several hostages, including women, the elderly and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners,” Biden said. Israel and the Palestinians would then negotiate a lasting ceasefire during those six weeks, but the truce would continue as long as the talks continued, the US president explained.

Hamas stated that it considers the plan outlined by Biden “positively.”