Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the “only reason” why Hamas (recognised as a terrorist group in the EU and the US) agreed to release all the hostages was military and diplomatic pressure.
He said it is untrue that critics claim that Hamas was allegedly ready to release the hostages a year or two ago without demanding a complete withdrawal of the army from Gaza.
“This is a complete lie. Hamas was forced to change its position only by our pressure,” he emphasised.
Netanyahu emphasised that he had withstood “tremendous pressure” both domestically and from the international community to end the war and make concessions. He thanked US President Donald Trump for his “firm support” and for participating in the strikes on Iran’s nuclear programme.
The prime minister said Israel can achieve the release of the hostages without withdrawing from Gaza, “God willing, it will happen very soon.”
Netanyahu instructed an Israeli negotiating team led by Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer to travel to Cairo to agree on the technical details of the deal. He noted that Israel and the US plan to finalise the talks within days, and added that Trump had warned Hamas not to delay.
In the second phase of the agreements, Netanyahu said, Hamas will be disarmed and the Gaza Strip will be demilitarised – either diplomatically under Trump’s plan or militarily, by Israeli forces.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump said he believes the Palestinian group Hamas (recognised as a terrorist group in the EU and the US) is ready for a “long peace” and called on Israel to stop bombing the Gaza Strip.
The statement came after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other conditions of the US plan to end the war, while offering further talks on other issues in the plan.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel “will continue to work in full co-operation with the president and his team to end the war in accordance with the principles established by Israel, which are in line with President Trump’s vision”.
Meanwhile, Reuters wrote, citing residents of Gaza City, that the Israeli military continued strikes after Trump’s call.
The previous evening, Hamas said it agreed with some aspects of US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war in the Gaza Strip, particularly the release of hostages and the transfer of power in the enclave to an independent administration as part of a peaceful settlement of the situation in the region.
Hamas published its response to the US president’s proposals after Trump earlier today gave the group until Sunday to accept the entire plan.
As for other terms of Trump’s peace plan, Hamas said it would seek further negotiations.
Earlier, Israel, as well as Arab and European states, announced their support for Trump’s plan.
Trump, in announcing a deadline for Hamas on 3 October, said that if the group did not agree to the deal he was proposing, “real hell” awaited it.
Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump said Israel and other countries were “very close” to reaching an agreement to end the war in the Gaza Strip.
The White House released proposals for his 20-point peace plan, which includes a ceasefire, an exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, the disarmament of Hamas and the creation of a transitional technocratic cabinet with Palestinians and international experts as members. The plan stipulates that Hamas would be excluded from the political process. Hamas members who wish to leave Gaza would be allowed to do so. There will be no resettlement of Gazans under the agreement.
The plan also calls for the creation of an international transitional body, a “Peace Council,” headed by Donald Trump, whose members are also to include other senior officials, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The body is to be responsible for the development and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. The territory itself, the plan says, should become a “deradicalised terror-free zone” and order there should be maintained by an international stabilisation force. If Gaza reconstruction and reforms in the Palestinian Authority are successful, the document said, the path to Palestinian statehood could be opened. The U.S. would facilitate Palestinian dialogue with Israel, the plan said.