Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected a Hamas proposal for a ceasefire and an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict while demanding that Israel will have "total victory" in Gaza.
On Tuesday, Hamas proposed a three-phase ceasefire plan after meeting with mediators from Qatar and Egypt. The plan, which would unfold over the course of more than four months, includes an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and the release of all Hamas hostages in exchange for Israel freeing imprisoned Palestinians.
Netanyahu, who has been under increasing international pressure amid concerns over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, dismissed the Hamas plan as "delusional" and vowed to eliminate the militant group, which is the governing authority for Palestinians in Gaza.
"We are on the path to total victory," Netanyahu said during a press conference on Wednesday. "It's a matter of months. And I would like to emphasize again that there is no solution other than total victory. If Hamas survives in Gaza, it's only a matter of time until the next massacre."
"Only total victory will allow us to restore security in Israel, both in the north and in the south," he added.
Netanyahu made the remarks shortly after a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who insisted that there was still "space for agreement to be reached" and vowed to "work at that relentlessly until we get there."
A State Department spokesperson told Newsweek that the U.S. supports "Israel's right to protect itself, consistent with international law, to ensure that the events of October 7 are never repeated" but "we must also forge a path forward to a sustainable peace between Israelis and Palestinians."
"As Secretary Blinken said in Qatar this week, there is a powerful path before us to achieve lasting peace and security, including 'practical, timebound, irreversible' steps to establish a Palestinian state standing side-by-side in peace with Israel," the spokesperson added.
Israel began its assault on Gaza after the surprise October 7 attack by Hamas militants in southern Israel, which killed at least 1,200 people and resulted in hundreds of others being taken hostage.
Over 27,000 Palestinians have since been killed by Israel, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. The death count may be higher, as thousands more Palestinians are thought to be buried under rubble in Gaza, according to Reuters.
The Hamas proposal that Netanyahu rejected on Wednesday came in response to a ceasefire proposal from Israel, the U.S., Qatar and Egypt. The only pause to the conflict came in late November, when hostilities were put on hold for one week.
Netanyahu's approval ratings in Israel have recently suffered, while his approach to the war has been denounced by some Israelis, including hostages who have already been released by Hamas. It is believed that at least 100 hostages are still being held in Gaza.
Six former hostages urged Netanyahu to change his approach during a press conference on Wednesday, including Adina Moshe, who warned the Israeli prime minister that his tactics could result in the death of hostages.
"Everything is in your hands," Moshe said, according to The Jerusalem Post. "If you continue in this line of destroying Hamas, there will be no hostages left to save ... I want my country back; the moral of my country is no more."
Update 2/8/24, 2:47 p.m. ET: This article has been updated to include comment from the U.S. State Department.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Aila Slisco is a Newsweek night reporter based in New York. Her focus is on reporting national politics, where she ... Read more
