Netanyahu – Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed that there will be no ceasefire in the war in Gaza “until our prisoners return”. The Israeli newspaper “Haaretz” reported this on Sunday.
“We will continue to fight until we defeat them.”
“We assure both our enemies and our friends: we will continue (to fight) until we defeat them,” Netanyahu added during a visit to an air base in southern Israel.
Netanyahu on Friday refused to accept a “temporary truce” before the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza.
“We reject the temporary truce.”
Netanyahu said after his meeting with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Tel Aviv: “We continue with all our strength and Israel refuses a temporary truce that does not include the release of our hostages.”
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On the ground, Israeli airstrikes targeted a refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip early Sunday morning, leaving dozens dead and injured, according to Palestinian Health Ministry officials.
“We are making progress with the truce!”
The airstrikes came a day after the United States urged Israel to implement a humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, where Palestinians reported several deaths on Saturday.
US President Joe Biden said on Saturday that progress had been made on the humanitarian truce in Gaza.
Death toll
Interestingly, the number of Palestinians who died in the war between Israel and Hamas has risen to over 9,700, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health.
In the occupied West Bank, more than 140 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli violence and raids.
In Israel, more than 1,400 people were killed in the attack launched by Hamas on October 7, which led to the start of fighting.
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