Netanyahu says ending Gaza war now would keep Hamas in power

JERUSALEM: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hardened his rejection of Hamas demands for an end to the Gaza war in exchange for the freeing of hostages, saying on Sunday that would keep the Palestinian Islamist group in power and pose a threat to Israel.

Netanyahu said Israel was willing to pause fighting in Gaza in order to secure the release of hostages still being held by Hamas, believed to number more than 130.

“But while Israel has shown willingness, Hamas remains entrenched in its extreme positions, first among them the demand to remove all our forces from the Gaza Strip, end the war, and leave Hamas in power,” Netanyahu said.

“Hamas would be able to achieve its promise of carrying out again and again and again its massacres, rapes and kidnapping.”

In Cairo, Hamas leaders held a second day of truce talks with Egyptian and Qatari mediators, with no apparent progress reported as the group maintained its demand that any agreement must end the war in Gaza, Palestinian officials said.

The two sides blamed each other for the impasse and the Hamas delegation said it would leave Cairo truce talks on Sunday night to consult with its leadership. However, the Hamas officials planned to return to the Egyptian capital on Tuesday, two Egyptian security sources said.

In their second day of talks with Egyptian and Qatari mediators, Hamas negotiators maintained their stance that any truce agreement must end the war, Palestinian officials said. Israeli officials have not travelled to Cairo to take part in indirect diplomacy, but on Sunday Netanyahu reiterated Israel’s aim since the start of the war nearly seven months ago: to disarm and dismantle the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas for good or else endanger Israel’s future security.

One official briefed on the talks told Reuters: “The latest round of mediation in Cairo is near to collapse.”

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Hamas seemed not to be serious about reaching a truce.

“We are observing worrying signs that Hamas does not intend to reach an agreement with us,” Gallant said. “This means strong military action in Rafah will begin in the very near future, and in the rest of the Strip.”

In a statement released shortly after Netanyahu’s, Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh said the group was still keen on reaching a comprehensive ceasefire that ends the Israeli “aggression”, guarantees Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza, and achieves “a serious” deal to free Israelis being held hostage in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners.

Haniyeh blamed Netanyahu for “the continuation of the aggression and the expansion of the circle of conflict, and sabotaging the efforts made through the mediators and various parties”.

Qatar, where Hamas has a political office, and Egypt are trying to mediate a follow-up to a brief November ceasefire, amid international dismay over the soaring death toll in Gaza and the plight of its 2.3 million inhabitants.