Netanyahu says he won’t agree to a deal that ends the war in Gaza
LA TimesPeople protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and call for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group in Tel Aviv on Saturday. The viability of a U.S.-backed proposal to wind down the 8-month-long war in Gaza was cast into doubt Monday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would be willing to agree only to a “partial” cease-fire deal that would not end the war, comments that sparked an uproar from families of hostages held by Hamas. The prime minister’s comments stood in sharp contrast to the outlines of the deal detailed late last month by U.S. President Biden, who framed the plan as an Israeli one and which some in Israel refer to as “Netanyahu’s deal.” His remarks could further strain Israel’s ties to the U.S., its top ally, which launched a major diplomatic push for the latest cease-fire proposal. The group said its insistence that any deal should include a permanent cease-fire and the withdrawal of all Israeli forces from the entire Gaza Strip “was an inevitable necessity to block Netanyahu’s attempts of evasion, deception, and perpetuation of aggression and the war of extermination against our people.” Netanyahu shot back and in a statement from his office said Hamas opposed a deal.