Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday refused to explicitly confirm or deny claims by U.S. President Joe Biden that Israel has proposed a ceasefire and hostage release agreement that would keep Hamas armed and in power in the Gaza Strip.
But Netanyahu’s response suggested Israel’s “actual proposal” differed from what Biden described.
Breitbart News reported that on Friday, Biden proposed a three-part agreement similar to proposals Hamas has previously rejected, but which did not mention disarming Hamas, effectively keeping it in power.
Israel has now laid out a roadmap for a lasting ceasefire and the release of all hostages.
The proposal was conveyed to Hamas by Qatar yesterday.
Today, I would like to explain those conditions to the world. pic.twitter.com/0cdypBP9wb
— President Biden (@POTUS) May 31, 2024
Biden claimed the Israeli government had proposed the deal, but then, bizarrely, attacked political parties within the Israeli government for rejecting it, adding that a “total victory” over Hamas was impossible.
The timing of Biden’s proposal coincided with the start of the Jewish Sabbath in Israel, making it impossible for religious parties to respond. Prime Minister Netanyahu, who is not a strict observer of the Sabbath, tends to avoid making comments about it.
In a statement late Friday night Israeli time, Netanyahu responded to Biden without confirming or denying whether Israel had proposed the deal Biden described.
The Israeli Government is united in its desire to have the hostages returned as soon as possible and is working towards achieving this goal.
The prime minister authorized negotiators to submit a proposal to that effect, which would allow Israel to continue the war until all of its objectives are achieved, including the destruction of Hamas’ military and governing power.
The proposal that Israel has actually put forward, which includes conditional transitions from one stage to the next, would allow Israel to adhere to these principles.
The two proposals, Biden and Netanyahu, clearly differ on the issue of whether to destroy Hamas, a point Biden’s proposal completely ignores.
It’s also possible that Biden misinterpreted the Israeli proposal in order to pressure Israel. (One possible “sign” is that Biden credited Israel for the “road map”; Biden has criticized Israel for months for not offering a post-war plan.)
In early May, with an Israeli attack on the last battalions in Rafah looming, Hamas claimed it had accepted a cease-fire, but the terms it accepted were not those actually proposed by Israel, and Israeli officials later complained that the Biden administration had secretly worked with intermediaries to change the terms of the agreement.
Biden’s announcement on Friday appears to be a repeat of the same tactic: releasing a proposed agreement in the media that Israel has not signed, in order to encourage Hamas to agree and pressure Israel to accept it.
update: Hamas welcomed Biden’s proposal.
BREAKING: Hamas issued a statement saying it “positively views” the points contained in President Biden’s speech, primarily the call for a permanent ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip, reconstruction, and prisoner exchanges. “Hamas…
— Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) May 31, 2024
update: Former President Barack Obama approved Biden insisted the proposal was Biden’s, not Israel’s: “Today, President Biden laid out a clear, realistic and fair plan to establish an immediate ceasefire and end the war in Gaza…I am deeply encouraged by President Biden’s steady and tireless efforts.”
Joel B. Pollack is executive editor of Breitbart News. Breitbart News Sunday The show airs Sunday nights from 7 to 10 p.m. (4 to 7 p.m. ET) on SiriusXM Patriot. He recently published an e-book,The Zionist Conspiracy (And How to Join It)” is available on Audible. He is also the author of an e-book. Not Free or Fair: The 2020 US Presidential ElectionHe is the recipient of the Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship in 2018. Follow him on Twitter. Joel Pollack.
This post has been updated.
