Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reassured his country this evening that the hostages held by Hamas will return home. Thirty-three “brothers and sisters will return home” thanks to Israel’s “firm position”, he said in his first address to the nation after the ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
But Netanyahu also made it clear that he intends to keep his hands free. Israel “reserves the right” to resume fighting if necessary, he warned. Netanyahu reported that during the elections he always remained firm on three points. First, the «right to return to fight if necessary», with the support of the United States. Second, a significant increase in the number of live hostages to be returned in the first phase of the agreement. Third, maintaining a presence in the Philadelphia Corridor, along the Gaza-Egypt border; Israel will not decrease the number of troops, but rather will increase it in the first phase, he explained.
The Israeli prime minister then clarified that the Palestinians convicted of murder and released following the agreement will not remain in the West Bank, but will go to Gaza or abroad. Prisoners serving serious sentences for terrorism but not guilty of murder will be released in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
At the end of his speech, Netanyahu assured that the military campaign was a success and thanked the country for its support. “We have changed the face of the Middle East,” he said, and Hamas is now “totally isolated”
A Hamas official told Ynet that the terrorist organization is delaying for technical reasons the transmission of the names of the abductees who should be released tomorrow. And he explained that “communication takes place physically through messengers, and it takes time for them to agree on the names and locations of the abductees, when the IDF planes are still above them.” Then he added that the final list will be released only after the approval of Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar.