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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue Israel’s conquest of and genocide in Gaza even if Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal that would see the release of the rest of the Israeli captives being held in the Strip — just days after Hamas officials accepted the latest proposal by Qatari and Egyptian officials.
In an interview with Sky News Australia, Netanyahu said “there was a never a question” that Israel would continue its genocide regardless of whether Hamas agreed to a deal.
News anchor Sharri Markson asked, “there are reports tonight that Hamas is on the verge of accepting a deal for a ceasefire. Is this true and do you still plan to take over Gaza and eliminate the terrorists if they do agree to a deal?”
In response, Netanyahu said, “we’re gonna do that anyway. There was never a question that we’re not going to leave Hamas there. I think President Trump put it best, he says Hamas has to disappear from Gaza.”
He went on to say that the assault “could end today” if Hamas “lays down its arms” and releases the remaining Israeli captives. “That’s our goal to get all the hostages out, to disarm Hamas, demilitarise Gaza, and give a different future for Gazans,” he said.
The statement comes after reports this week that Hamas has accepted a deal for a captive swap between Hamas and Israel, as well as a temporary pause in Israeli attacks and a surge of humanitarian aid. Reports say that Hamas would release half of the 50 Israeli captives held in Gaza in the 60-day ceasefire.
“Hamas, along with the Palestinian factions, relayed their acceptance of the proposal put forward yesterday by the Qatari and Egyptian mediators,” Hamas said in a statement on Monday. Israel has said that it will respond to Hamas’s statement by Friday.
Hamas has accused Netanyahu of purposefully sabotaging a deal on Wednesday, as Israel has carried on its “systematic destruction” of Gaza City, the UN has said.
“Netanyahu’s disregard for the mediators’ proposal … proves that he is the real obstructionist of any agreement,” the group said, per Reuters.
Indeed, numerous reports over the course of the genocide have found that Netanyahu is intentionally sabotaging ceasefire deals, even when they would entail the release of all Israeli captives. Key Israeli ministers in Netanyahu’s cabinet, like Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, have outright said that Israel would not stop its genocide, “not even in exchange for hostages.”
The prime minister’s comments on Sky News Australia appear to confirm those reports, rebuting Israel’s repeated insistence that Hamas could end the genocide if it releases the remaining Israeli captives. Netanyahu has previously said that Israel’s goal is to implement Donald Trump’s plan for the total takeover of Gaza and forced displacement of millions of Palestinians there.
Netanyahu has been plowing forward with a reported proposal for Israel to annex the Gaza Strip put forth last month. But his plans for conquest aren’t limited to Gaza; in recent days, he has voiced support for the idea of “Greater Israel,” which would involve the conquest of not just Palestine, but wide swaths of other countries in the Middle East like Egypt and Jordan.
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