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Israel minister demands Netanyahu ends Gaza ceasefire talks with ‘Hamas murderers in Doha'

Israel minister demands Netanyahu ends Gaza ceasefire talks with ‘Hamas murderers in Doha'

News2409-07-2025
Israeli Minister Itamar Ben Gvir urged an end to Gaza ceasefire negotiations.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the US to discuss a ceasefire.
US President Donald Trump is confident of a truce agreement.
Israel's far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to call back a delegation conducting indirect talks with Hamas in Qatar for a ceasefire in Gaza.
'I call on the Prime Minister to immediately recall the delegation that went to negotiate with the Hamas murderers in Doha,' Ben Gvir said in a post on X on the third day of talks between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement.
Instead, the minister who lives in a West Bank settlement called for 'total siege, military crushing, encouraging emigration (of Palestinians outside of Gaza), and (Israeli) settlement' in the Gaza Strip.
He called these measures 'the keys to total victory, not a reckless deal that would release thousands of terrorists and withdraw the (Israeli army) from areas captured with the blood of our soldiers'.
A Palestinian official close to the talks told AFP on Tuesday that the talks were ongoing, with a focus on 'the mechanisms for implementation, particularly the clauses related to withdrawal and humanitarian aid'.
Netanyahu travelled to Washington for his third visit since Trump's return to power, where the US president on Monday voiced confidence that a deal could be reached.
Netanyahu said on Wednesday that his meeting with Trump focused on efforts to free hostages held in Gaza, stressing his determination to 'eliminate' the military and governmental capabilities of Hamas.
Netanyahu also said that they discussed the consequences and possibilities of 'the great victory we achieved over Iran', during his third US visit since the president began his second term on 20 January.
The Israeli leader ruled out a full Palestinian state, insisting Israel would 'always' keep security control over the Gaza Strip.
Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said he hoped for an agreement within days.
We are hopeful that by end of this week we will have an agreement that will bring us into a 60-day ceasefire.
Steve Witkoff
The deal would include the return of 10 live hostages held by Palestinian militant groups since Hamas' October 2023 attack on Israel, and nine dead hostages, Witkoff added.
Qatar however said on Tuesday more time was needed for negotiations for a breakthrough between Israel and Hamas, as indirect negotiations extended into a third day in Doha.
'I don't think that I can give any timeline at the moment, but I can say right now that we will need time for this,' Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said.
Israel has been waging war on Hamas in Gaza for over 21 months, its troops gradually occupying more and more of the Palestinian territory.
According to the UN, 82% of Gaza is now under Israeli military control or displacement orders.
Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images
The war was triggered by Hamas' unprecedented attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023.
The attack resulted in 1 219 deaths on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on official data.
Of the 251 people abducted that day, 49 are still hostages in Gaza, including 27 declared dead by the Israeli army.
At least 57 523 Gazans, most of them civilians, have been killed in Israel's retaliatory campaign, according to data from the Hamas-run territory's health ministry.
The figures are deemed reliable by the UN.
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How Trump is bursting the bureaucrats' DC bubble, one agency at a time

New York Post

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How Trump is bursting the bureaucrats' DC bubble, one agency at a time

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DOGE's favorite consulting firm

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Trump counters Netanyahu on 'real starvation' in Gaza: From the Politics Desk
Trump counters Netanyahu on 'real starvation' in Gaza: From the Politics Desk

NBC News

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  • NBC News

Trump counters Netanyahu on 'real starvation' in Gaza: From the Politics Desk

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