A new report shines insight into deliberations between President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.
Biden urged Netanyahu to pause Israel’s military operation targeting Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip in a Monday phone call, according to Axios.
Biden described the plan as a means to secure the release of some Israeli hostage captured by Hamas during the group’s terrorist attack on Israel last month.
The idea, reportedly brokered by Qatar, would see Hamas account for all of the hostages imprisoned under its custody.
NEW — Biden asks Netanyahu for a three-day pause in the fighting to allow progress in releasing some of the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. pic.twitter.com/QVpYQBolRg
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) November 7, 2023
Fighting would cease for three days under the arrangement.
The terrorist group would disclose the identities of its prisoners to the United States and Israel.
Netanyahu wasn’t as keen on the idea as Biden was.
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Netanyahu reportedly told Biden that he doubted Hamas’ intentions to deliver any hostages to freedom, and suspected that the group would use a tactical pause to further attack Israeli soldiers.
The Israeli leader rejected the idea of a cease-fire in an interview with ABC News.
“A cease-fire would be a surrender to Hamas, it would be a victory for Hamas.”
EXCLUSIVE: @DavidMuir interviews Israeli PM Netanyahu, pressing him on the Biden administration’s calls for a humanitarian pause in Gaza as the death toll climbs; if he bears responsibility for intelligence failures on Oct. 7; and more. https://t.co/zjSKIi5FJF pic.twitter.com/LydTy5XtZf
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) November 7, 2023
“There’ll be no cease-fire, general cease-fire, in Gaza without the release of our hostages,” Netanyahu pledged.
However, the longtime prime minister left open the possibility for more limited pauses in fighting, in which individual hostages would be liberated.
“As far as tactical little pauses, an hour here, an hour there. We’ve had them before, I suppose, will check the circumstances in order to enable goods, humanitarian goods to come in, or our hostages, individual hostages to leave.”
“But I don’t think there’s going to be a general cease-fire.”
Israeli officials believe that 241 individuals are held captive by Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza.
