Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sept. 29 touted his “historic” visit to Washington, speaking before returning to Israel after U.S. President Donald Trump presented his plan to end the Gaza war, JNS reported.
“It was an excellent visit, both the start at the United Nations and the conclusion in Washington,” Netanyahu said in a Hebrew video on X.
Instead of Hamas isolating the Jewish state, “We turned the tables and isolated Hamas,” the prime minister continued, noting that “now the whole world, including the Arab and Muslim world, is pressuring Hamas to accept the terms we set together with President Trump.”
“We will bring back all our hostages, both the living and the dead alike, while the Israel Defense Forces remains in most of the Gaza Strip. Who would have believed that?” Netanyahu said of the proposed agreement.
He noted that past negotiations had often sought to pressure Jerusalem to accept Hamas’s terms for a deal to release the 48 remaining hostages.
“That’s not happening. And President Trump added that if Hamas refuses, he will provide Israel full backing to complete the military operation and eliminate them,” according to the Israeli premier.
He denied claims that the agreement contained a clause regarding the establishment of a Palestinian state, noting Trump also made clear this would be “a huge reward for terror and a danger to the State of Israel.”
Likud Party Knesset member Avichay Buaron tweeted, “This is what total victory looks like!”
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich denounced the plan as “a resounding diplomatic failure,” saying it ignores the lessons learned from the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in southern Israel.
“In my view, this will end in tragedy,” the Religious Zionism Party leader wrote on X. “Our children will once again be forced to fight in Gaza. As Einstein warned, it is the very definition of folly to repeat the same actions over and over while expecting a different outcome.”
Religious Zionism Party lawmaker Moshe Solomon told JNS that while Trump’s plan “includes good and meaningful elements” for Israel, Jerusalem’s goals must be met before ending the war in Gaza.
“There must be no threat to Israeli citizens in Gaza, whether from Hamas, other terror groups, or the Palestinian Authority,” he said. “If those conditions are met, then this is a good agreement. But moving forward, we will not agree under any circumstances to a Palestinian state.”
