Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will only consider a future deal with Hamas if it includes the release of all remaining hostages, reports said Monday. US President Donald Trump has expressed agreement with Netanyahu’s view that Hamas will not accept a deal under current conditions.
According to Channel 12 News, sources close to Netanyahu said he is open to negotiations only under terms set for ending the war — and only if every hostage is returned. Until then, Israel will not engage in talks.
Netanyahu’s position on partial versus comprehensive deals had been uncertain after last Thursday’s security cabinet decision to capture Gaza City. During Sunday’s press conference, he avoided direct answers on the matter. The report said Netanyahu now appears aligned with Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, who advised against any partial agreements in last week’s cabinet meeting.
On Monday, former US President Donald Trump told Axios he does not believe Hamas will agree to a deal under the current situation in Gaza, and he neither endorsed nor opposed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s newly approved plan to seize Gaza City in the north of the Strip.
In a short phone interview, Axios reported, Trump appeared to agree with Netanyahu’s view that greater military pressure on Hamas is needed. He said Israel must decide the next steps in Gaza and determine whether Hamas should be allowed to remain there, adding, “They can’t stay there.”
The US president described his Sunday phone call with Netanyahu – during which the two leaders addressed the Gaza City operation — as a “good call.”
“I have one thing to say: remember October 7, remember October 7,” Trump told Axios, referring to Hamas’s 2023 massacre that started the ongoing war.
The comment mirrored Netanyahu’s remarks in two Sunday press conferences, following the dramatic cabinet decision, in which he warned that “there are those who have forgotten October 7.”
On Thursday night, the security cabinet approved Netanyahu’s proposal to seize the densely populated Gaza City in the north of the enclave, despite military warnings that such an operation could endanger the lives of remaining hostages and trigger a humanitarian crisis.
The only dissenting votes came from Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who favor permanently occupying Gaza, expelling Palestinians, and reestablishing Jewish settlements there.
Hebrew media reported Monday that Smotrich’s allies welcomed news of Netanyahu’s apparent decision to abandon discussions of partial hostage deals.
Officials in Smotrich’s inner circle said the finance minister would demand that Netanyahu stand by the reported decision and aim for a quick, total victory over Hamas.
