MK Zvi Sukkot: Hamas opposes a hostage deal that doesn't involve Israel's surrender

Commenting on the possibility of a hostage deal, MK Tzvi Sukkot, a member of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, told Radio North today (Sunday) that Hamas has never budged on its demand for a complete "Israeli surrender," meaning a permanent end to the war, in exchange for the hostages.

According to Sukkot, "in the end this event hasn't changed for a whole year, for the very simple reason that Hamas is only interested in one thing - freeing all the hostages in exchange for the complete surrender of Israel."

He also said that "what they are doing," meaning negotiating a hostage deal, "is not the right thing. We need to break Hamas and make them understand that it's in their interest to return the hostages. The reality in Gaza today unfortunately is that Hamas controls Gaza because the humanitarian aid ends up in its hands and it sells it to the residents."

He ended by saying that "for a whole year, there has been no deal on the agenda which does not include the surrender of Israel, a return to October 6, the release of murderers with blood on their hands. This is why we've been in this loop for a year, there is no government which will agree to this condition."