Netanyahu arrived in the U.S. on Thursday afternoon in preparation for his speech on Friday. He was accompanied by the families of hostages who flew with him on the "Knaf Tzion" plane. Upon landing, Netanyahu stated, "Our policy is clear – we continue to strike Hezbollah with full force."
"We will not stop until we achieve all our goals, primarily the safe return of residents from the north to their homes. This is the policy, and let no one be mistaken about it," the Prime Minister added. The Prime Minister's flight included representatives from the families of the hostages: Sharon Sharabi, brother of Yossi Sharabi (hostage, fallen), Eli Sharabi (hostage), Eli Shteiwi, father of Idan (hostage), Yifat Heyman, mother of Inbar (hostage, fallen), Salem Al-Atrash, brother of soldier Muhammad Al-Atrash (hostage, fallen), Yizhar Lifshitz, son of Oded (hostage), and Yaakov Samrano, father of Yonatan (hostage, fallen), who was kidnapped by an UNRWA employee.
The Prime Minister's statement comes in response to reports that a ceasefire was achieved between Hezbollah and Israel. This morning, journalist Amit Segal reported that a source in the Prime Minister's office confirmed: "There is a green light for a ceasefire for negotiation purposes." Following this, several Likud Knesset members told Dekel Aaron Shperan from "Kan 11" that "if Netanyahu pursues a ceasefire, we will reconsider our vote to approve the budget on Sunday." Minister Miki Zohar added that "a ceasefire without any significant concessions from Hezbollah is a serious mistake that endangers Israel's substantial security achievements in recent days. I very much hope these reports are not true; we must continue with full force until a clear resolution is reached in the north."
Minister Ben-Gvir also threatened to resign. After a meeting of the Otzma Yehudit faction, Ben-Gvir stated that if a ceasefire is signed, his party would no longer be bound by coalition discipline and would resign from the government in the case of a permanent ceasefire. "If a temporary ceasefire is signed with Hezbollah, the Otzma Yehudit faction removes any coalition commitment – with all that entails: no votes, no participation in government or cabinet meetings, and no coalition activities."
"If the temporary ceasefire becomes permanent under any 'framework,' which would mean condemning the residents of the north to the mercy of Hezbollah, all ministers and Knesset members from Otzma Yehudit will resign from the government and the coalition," Ben-Gvir added.
Pressure on Netanyahu continued after journalist Yaron Abraham from News 12 reported in the afternoon that Netanyahu ordered the IDF to moderate its strikes in Lebanon, amid ceasefire negotiations in the north.
Shortly after, the Prime Minister's office released a statement addressing the reports of a possible ceasefire: "The news of a ceasefire is incorrect. It is an American-French proposal to which the Prime Minister did not even respond."
Netanyahu also referred to Yaron Abraham's report: "The report of an alleged directive to moderate the fighting in the north is also false. The Prime Minister instructed the IDF to continue fighting at full intensity, according to the plans presented to him. Furthermore, fighting in Gaza will continue until all war goals are achieved."
In the afternoon, Lebanese channel LBCI reported that Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer informed U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein that Israel continues its fighting in Lebanon and does not agree to the proposals presented.
Additionally, Reuters reported that Israel rejected ceasefire proposals with Hezbollah, contrary to calls from allies, including the U.S., for a cessation of hostilities.
