“If we reach a (ceasefire) agreement, it will be delayed, but it will happen,” he said (File)
Tel Aviv, Israel:
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that a military operation against Gazalafah, where 1.4 million Palestinians have taken refuge in the tent city, would give Israel a “total victory” over Hamas within weeks.
Gaza ceasefire talks have resumed in Doha, Egypt’s state media reported, but Netanyahu said any agreement would not stop Rafah’s offensive.
“If we reach a (ceasefire) agreement, it will be delayed, but it will happen,” he told CBS.
“If we don’t have a deal, we will do it anyway. It has to be done because total victory is our goal and total victory is just around the corner – once we get started, it won’t take months, weeks Yes.” “.
An Israeli delegation was in Paris on Friday to discuss a new ceasefire agreement and the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
Later, talks resumed in Doha, with representatives of Hamas also participating.
“We are all working hard. We want it. I want it. Because we want to free the remaining hostages,” Netanyahu said.
“I can’t tell you whether we will make progress, but if Hamas abandons its delusional claims and brings them to reality, we will make the progress we all want.”
According to Israel, during the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, the Palestinian group took approximately 250 hostages, 130 of whom remain in Gaza, and 31 of whom are presumed dead.
Qatar, Egypt and the United States have been leading efforts to reach a new deal, following the week-long truce in November that freed more than 100 hostages and 240 Palestinian prisoners.
International pressure for a ceasefire has grown in recent weeks, and Israel’s military offensive on the Palestinian territory has killed nearly 30,000 people, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, which rules Gaza, in response to its October attacks that killed 1,160 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of official Israeli figures.
Asked about U.S. demands that Israel protect civilians in Rafah, Netanyahu said his military chiefs would present to him on Sunday “a dual plan – an evacuation plan and a dismantling of the remaining ( Hamas) battalion plan.”
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