According to Al Jazeera, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed that the Israeli army will not withdraw from the Philadelphi Corridor and the Rafah border crossing near the Gaza-Egypt border.
Netanyahu, in a video posted on his X account, claimed that Hamas is unwilling to accept any mechanism that would prevent the passage of weapons and fighters into northern Gaza.
The Israeli leader also accused the Palestinian group of obstructing a deal to return Israeli captives by rejecting the broad outlines of the agreement. "Anyone who, like me, wants to release the abductees should continue to put pressure on Hamas, not the Israeli government," he said.
Netanyahu vowed to maintain military pressure on Hamas and its leaders until all abductees are returned and the goals of the war are achieved. "We will continue to exert military pressure on Hamas and its leaders until all abductees are returned and the goals of war are achieved," he stated.
The announcement comes amid ongoing tensions between Israel and Hamas, with Egypt, Qatar, and the United States leading mediation efforts to reach a truce and a hostage-prisoner swap deal between the two parties. The Israeli army took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing in May, halting the entry of humanitarian aid trucks from Egypt into Gaza.
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