In addition to promising to authorize military plans to take control of Gaza City, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed he had directed officials to start “immediate negotiations” for the release of captives in Gaza and an end to the conflict.
“I came to approve the IDF’s (Israel Defense Forces) plans to take control of Gaza City and to defeat Hamas,” Netanyahu stated Thursday while touring a military installation close to the Palestinian territory.
“At the same time, I instructed to begin immediate negotiations for the release of all our hostages and an end to the war on terms acceptable to Israel,” he stated.
The Xinhua news agency said that Netanyahu did not specify where or how the talks would start.
According to a senior official quoted by Israel’s Ynet news site, no group is currently scheduled to leave for Doha or Cairo.
Netanyahu and his security cabinet were scheduled to meet Thursday evening to get final approval for the attack on the major city in the enclave, an Israeli official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.
The statement was made one day after the military said that 20,000 more reservists would be called up in the next few days after mobilizing 60,000.
Egyptian and Qatari negotiators proposed a temporary truce and captive release, which Hamas accepted earlier this week. Israel has not yet responded in a formal manner.
Israeli security control over the enclave, the disarmament of Hamas, the release of hostages, the demilitarization of Gaza, and the appointment of a non-Israeli entity to oversee day-to-day operations in the region—which, he emphasized, would not be Hamas or the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority—are the five requirements that Netanyahu stated earlier this week in order for Israel to agree to halt the offensive.
According to Gaza’s health authorities, Israeli forces killed at least 70 people and injured 356 others during their nighttime assault of Gaza City and other locations. Since October 7, 2023, Israeli strikes and gunshots have resulted in 62,192 deaths and 157,114 injuries, according to the authorities.
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