Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday pushed back against the pressure to finalise a ceasefire deal in Gaza, after many went on strike in his country and US President Joe Biden said he needed to do more to reach a deal.
He said that Israel will continue insisting on its control of the Philadephi corridor, a narrow band along Gaza's border with Egypt, where it contends Hamas smuggling weapons into Gaza.
Netanyahu's remarks were his first since the massive strike in Israel over the hostage crisis.
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No One Can Preach Me: Netanyahu
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu hit back at the pressure of reaching a ceasefire deal and made his first comments since the recent mass protests over the hostage crisis.
Netanyahu said that he will continue to insist on Israeli control of the narrow band along Gaza's border with Egypt—Philadelphi corridor. He said that this was necessary to keep Hamas from re-stocking its arms supply via tunnels, adding that, "This is the oxygen of Hamas".
The PM asserted that no one was more committed to freeing the hostages than him, but, "no one will preach to me".
US President Joe Biden had earlier said that Netanyahu was not doing enough to reach a ceasefire agreement, adding that the negotiators remain "very close" to a deal.
Netanyahu on Monday pledged "total victory" over Hamas and blamed the militant group for the failure of negotiations.
He further said that he is ready to carry out the first phase of the ceasefire—a plan that would include the release of some hostages, partial pullout of Israeli troops and the release of some prisoners held by Israel.
However, Netanyahu rejected Hamas' key demand of a full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, saying that he does not see any other party besides his country to be capable of securing Gaza's borders and preventing arms smuggling.
It was also reported that there were deep differences between the PM and his top security officials including Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over the ceasefire deal.
Hamas Offered 'Great Flexibility'
Hamas' official leading the negotiations, Khalil al-Hayya, told Al Jazeera late Sunday that Netanyahu deemed keeping the Philadelphi corridor "more important" than winning the release of hostages.
Al-Hayya also said Hamas had offered "great flexibility", including reducing its demand for 500 Palestinian prisoners to be release in exchange for each captive Israeli soldier to 50 and from 250 Palestinian prisoners for each Israeli civilian hostage to 30.
Partial Arms Exports Suspended To Israel: UK
The United Kingdom on Monday announced a partial suspension of some arms exports to Israel amid fear of them using it to commit "a serious violation of international humanitarian law".
UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy issued a statement in the House of Commons to declare that around 30 of 350 export licenses will be suspended, while pressing that it did not amount to a "blanket ban" or an "arms embargo".
Notably, the Labour Party government has been under pressure to take a tougher stance against Israel amid the war on Gaza, since being elected to power in the July general elections, The Associated Press reported.
"Facing a conflict such as this, it is this government's legal duty to review Britain's export licenses," Lammy said in the Parliament.
"It is with regret that I inform the House today the assessment I have received leaves me unable to conclude anything other than that for certain UK arms exports to Israel, there does exist a clear risk that they might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law," he said.
Though UK does not directly supply weapons to Israel, it grants export licenses for British companies to sell arms to the country.
Lammy also reiterated that the UK continues to support Israel's right to self-defense in accordance with the international law, adding that it will continue to work with Israel to "tackle the threat from Iran".
What Did Biden Say
US President Joe Biden held a Situation Room meeting with advisors involved in the negotiations to reach a hostage and ceasefire deal in Israel's war on Gaza.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Biden said that Netanyahu was not doing enough reach a ceasefire in the war, adding that the negotiators remain "very close" to a deal and "hope springs eternal".
Biden's statement came after a rare call for general strike in Israel to protest the failure to return hostages held in Gaza, which led to further disruptions around the country on Monday, including at its main international airport.
A sea of Israelis poured into the streets late Sunday in grief and anger after six hostages were found in Gaza. The public blamed Netanyahu, saying that they could have been returned alive in a deal with Hamas to end the nearly 11-month-old war.
The war which began since Hamas' unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7, last year, has led to the loss of several thousands of lives. Hamas had taken over 200 hostages on the day, of which more than 100 were released during a ceasefire in November last year.
Hamas killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, while Israel's retaliatory offensive in Gaza claimed the lives of over 40,000 Palestinians, as per health ministry officials.
The war has displaced the vast majority of Gaza's 2.3 million people, often multiple times, and plunged the besieged territory into a humanitarian catastrophe, including new fears of a polio outbreak.
