Hamas' hostage killings, Netanyahu complicating cease-fire deal, U.S. official says
A cease-fire between Israel and Hamas is "not close," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday, rejecting U.S. optimism over a deal and saying his red lines have become "redder" in the wake of the killing of six hostages in Gaza.
A cease-fire between Israel and Hamas is "not close," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday, rejecting U.S. optimism over a deal and saying his red lines have become "redder" in the wake of the killing of six hostages in Gaza.
Speaking a day after a senior Biden administration official said a deal had been “ninety percent” agreed, Netanyahu told the “Fox and Friends” morning show that was "exactly inaccurate."
He called the possibility of a looming deal a "false narrative," and again blamed Hamas, saying "they just want us out of Gaza so they can retake Gaza."
His comments came after the U.S. official told reporters in a briefing Wednesday that Hamas' hostage killings and the Israeli leader's increasingly hard-line stance had complicated Washington's push for truce.
They said at least two main issues remained: the identity of Palestinian prisoners to be freed in exchange for captives still held in Gaza, and the “redeployment” of Israeli forces in the enclave, with Netanyahu suggesting there will be no deal unless they can remain in an area known as the Philadelphi corridor.
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