Israel Rules out Ceasefire with Hamas, Says it is Time for War
The Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, saying it would amount to a “surrender to Hamas”.
Speaking in Tel Aviv, Netanyahu cites the bible as he says “this is a time for war”.
Also, Israel defense force spokesman Peter Lerner, said that Hamas is hiding behind Palestinians”.
He accuses Hamas of putting “all of their capabilities in the civilian arena”, including “explosive drones on the rooftops of houses” and “launching rockets from outside un facilities”.
Meanwhile, the United State (US) has rejected international calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in lockstep with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Israeli prime minister congratulated the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and security agency Shin Bet for freeing Ori Megidish, an army private, but Israeli joy was tempered by a Hamas video of three other captives that remain in captivity.
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Megidish was freed on Sunday night, three weeks after she was abducted with more than 220 other hostages, as Israel escalated its ground operation in Gaza. After a medical check declared her healthy she was reunited with her family, giving Israelis a rare image of joy.
However, many hostage relatives favour accepting a Hamas offer to swap them for about 5,000 Palestinians, including Islamist militants, in Israeli prisons.
The Israeli government has rejected the offer. The strategic affairs minister, Ron Dermer, said if there was a proposal to release the hostages the government would consider a “temporary pause” in hostilities to extract them safely.
Hamas’s military wing ratcheted up the pressure by releasing a video of three hostages – Danielle Aloni, Rimon Kirsht and Elena Trupanov – who were kidnapped on 7 October during a Hamas onslaught that killed more than 1,400 people in southern Israel.
The accompanying video description said: “A number of Zionist prisoners held by al-Qassam send a message to Netanyahu and the Zionist government.”
It is thought likely that the three women would have appeared in the video under duress. The Geneva conventions prohibit the taking of hostages.
