Hours after The Washington Post claimed that Hamas and Israel has agreed to a 5-day ceasefire, the Prime Minister of the Jewish State Benjamin Netanyahu rejected incorrect reports about any deal with the Islamic terror outfit on Saturday (18th November).
As per reports, Netanyahu in a press evening clarified that there was no deal in place yet for the release of 240 Israeli civilians held hostage by Hamas. He added that in case of any such deal, the Jewish State would update the public.
“There was no deal on the table…We want to get back all the hostages.We’re doing the utmost to bring back the most possible, including in stages, and we are united on this. We obviously want to bring (home) whole families together,” the Israeli Prime Minister was heard saying.
During the press conference, Minister Benny Gantz informed, “(We have) decades if needed to destroy this thing (Hamas). We don’t have decades to bring the people home…So, yes, from my point of view, it is a priority to get the hostages back.”
“But that priority doesn’t override our obligation (to destroy Hamas) however long it takes. I want to bring back the elderly, and the children. Nobody here wants anything else. Nobody in Israel wants anything else,” he emphasised.
Adrienne Watson, the White House National Security Council Spokesperson, also rejected The Washington Post report in a post on X (formerly Twitter). She said,”We have not reached a deal yet, but we continue to work hard to get to a deal.”
Earlier on Saturday (18th November), the American newspaper claimed that Israel and Hamas has reached a ‘tentative deal’ for ceasefire in exchange for dozens of women and chiledren held by the Islamic terror outfit in Gaza.
“The release, which could begin within the next several days — barring last-minute hitches — could lead to the first sustained pause in conflict in Gaza, according to people familiar with its provisions,” it claimed.
“The outline of a deal was put together during weeks of talks in Doha, Qatar among Israel, the United States and Hamas, indirectly represented by Qatari mediators, according to Arab and other diplomats,” The Washington Post claimed that the US helped ‘broker’ the ceasefire.
It further alleged, “But it remained unclear until now that Israel would agree to temporarily pause its offensive in Gaza, provided the conditions were right.” Several other publications including Reuters cited the American newspaper to claim that a ‘ceasefire’ was on the cards.