Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered his first press conference since December 2024 on Wednesday, calling the offensive in Gaza “an unprecedented operation in the history of wars,” and publicly stated that there are 20 hostages still alive in Gaza.
“We have returned so far 197 hostages, of whom 148 are alive. 20 are alive; we will return them all,” he said.
Before the release of former hostage Edan Alexander, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said that it still believed that the number of living hostages was 24 people. The fate of three of the hostages, who include one Israeli and two foreign nationals, is a serious concern for officials.
“If there is an opportunity for a temporary ceasefire to return hostages – we are prepared for it,” he said.
He also fired back at the High Court’s ruling regarding his attempt to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar, and stated that he intended to select a new spy agency chief.
“In my opinion, there is a simple question here — will the High Court and the Attorney-General respect the law, which is the will of the people?” he said. “The country is based on democratic rule of law — it was established by elected officials… Now the question is whether they will respect the law or not.”
Netanyahu provides outline for IDF plan in Gaza
The prime minister confirmed that the IDF will seize all of Gaza’s territory, but that Jerusalem must “avert a humanitarian crisis.”
In the conference, Netanyahu noted that the IDF’s new operation, Gideon’s Chariots, would feature three stages.
In stage one, the IDF will allow a flow of basic food aid into Gaza to “prevent a humanitarian crisis.” In stage two, American companies will open up aid points for aid delivery. In stage three, the IDF will facilitate the movement of Gazans southwards to organized points and prevent Hamas from infiltrating and benefiting from aid.
He added that he was ready to end the Israel-Hamas War in exchange for specific demands.
“I am ready to end the war on clear conditions that will guarantee Israel’s security. The return of the hostages, the removal of Hamas from power, full disarmament, and we are implementing the Trump plan.”
He added that the military “enforce[s] the ceasefire in Lebanon with an iron fist at all times, and that the IDF’s operations in Lebanon had lead to the fall of the Assad regime in Syria.
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