Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Sunday with Channel 14 in his first interview with the Israeli press since the war in Gaza began, and announced that the stage of intense fighting in Gaza is coming to a close.
He discussed the situation in the north and said that if a deal is not obtained, Israel will return the residents to their homes through military action.
Regarding a deal to bring back the hostages, the Prime Minister stated that he is prepared to advance such a deal, but not at the cost of stopping the war.
When asked about restoring a Jewish civilian presence in the Gaza Strip after the war, Netanyahu answered: "It isn't realistic and it does not line up with the war's objectives."
The Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum Headquarters claimed that the Prime Minister walked back, in the interview with Channel 14, the Israeli proposal for a deal to release the hostages.
"This is a neglect of the 120 hostages and a violation of the state's moral duty towards its citizens. The end of the fighting in the Strip, without the release of the hostages, is an unprecedented national failure and a failure to meet the goals of the war. The families of the hostages will not allow the government and its leader to withdraw from the basic commitments to the fate of our loved ones, from the responsibility and obligation to return all the hostages. There is no greater test than this for the Prime Minister," said the Headquarters.
The Prime Minister's Office said in response, "It is Hamas which opposes a deal, not Israel. Prime Minister Netanyahu has made it clear that we will not leave Gaza until we return all 120 of our hostages, living and deceased."