Benjamin Netanyahu: Hamas rejected every hostage proposal, so now - it's war

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a statement to the Israeli people tonight (Tuesday), in which he briefed them on the situation in the Gaza Strip, the hostages, and the renewal of the war against Hamas.

At the beginning of his statement, Netanyahu stressed that Israel took several steps to exhaust any possibility of returning the hostages, including "accepting every offer" put on the table, including that of American mediator Steve Witkoff, and even extending the ceasefire by weeks without receiving any hostages.

However, as Hamas rejected every proposal "time and again," "we have returned to fight - powerfully." Netanyahu said that he and Defense Minister Israel Katz accepted the recommendation of the IDF and other defense bodies to "return to intensive fighting against Hamas."

Netanyahu said that from now on, negotiations will "only take place under fire" and that the IDF will continue to fight against Hamas with increasing intensity.

The Prime Minister reiterated that "this is just the start" and that Israel will continue to fight to secure all the government's goals: freeing all the hostages, eliminating Hamas, and ensuring that Gaza will cease to be a threat to the State of Israel.

Netanyahu also took a shot at commentators in the media "echoing Hamas propaganda," warning Hamas - "don't count on it" working. He said that Israel is determined to achieve "all the goals of the war."

Netanyahu ended the statement by celebrating the defense forces and the citizens of Israel, saying that there was no contradiction between military pressure and freeing the hostages, as according to Netanyahu - pressure led to the previous two rounds of hostage releases.

The Prime Minister said that "we are winning" a historic war, but that the war is not yet over, and that it was vital for citizens to continue to heed the instructions of IDF Rear Command, which save lives.