At a Hanukkah candle lighting ceremony Wednesday with wounded soldiers in Tel Aviv, President Isaac Herzog pressed the country’s political leadership to make the final push for a ceasefire-hostage deal in Gaza, saying the government will receive his full backing in doing so.
“We are at a critical time for their return,” Herzog said. “I recently held a conference at the President’s Residence that dealt with the medical condition of the hostages. We heard from released hostages and medical experts, and based on their words and all the findings presented to me, I can tell you: The hostages’ lives are in clear and immediate danger. With each passing day, the threat to their lives increases.
“I call on our leadership to act with all our might, with all the tools at our disposal, and bring about a deal,” he said.
“It’s your job, it’s your responsibility,” Herzog added. “You have my full backing to bring about a deal that will bring them home.”
At the same time, Herzog conceded that Hamas is a “depraved enemy” that is trying to harm Israel by employing “psychological maneuvers.”
Herzog’s largely titular role means he has little influence over negotiations, though the former lawmaker was involved in helping shepherd some diplomatic contacts earlier in his term, including reaching a deal to free Israeli tourists who had been detained in Turkey.
Demonstrators gather with signs during an anti-government protest calling for action to secure the release of hostages outside the Defense Ministry headquarters in Tel Aviv on December 21, 2024 (Jack GUEZ / AFP)
As renewed hostage-ceasefire negotiations have appeared to stall despite previous expressions of optimism by senior officials, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of “not really wanting to sign a hostage deal.”
Lapid said that if Netanyahu “were determined to achieve a deal, he would have traveled to Cairo or Qatar himself. He would have mobilized the entire international community and would have already brought about a deal.”
Netanyahu’s office on Wednesday accused Hamas of lying and walking back terms it had previously agreed to, blaming the terror group for the stalled talks.
“The terrorist organization Hamas is lying again,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement, “reneging on understandings already reached, and is continuing to make negotiations difficult. Nevertheless, Israel will continue tirelessly in its efforts to bring home all of our hostages.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, second left, lights a Hanukkah candle with Orna Neutra, second right, and Ronen Neutra, on December 25, 2024. (Haim Zach/GPO)
The terror group, which started the war with its October 7 attack last year, earlier on Wednesday accused Israel of making new demands in the negotiations and causing delay.
The recriminations poured cold water on recent optimistic remarks from involved officials as to the chances of closing a deal being mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the US.
Informed unnamed sources told Kan news that the talks have not fallen apart, despite the fact that the Israeli negotiating team had returned from Qatar for deliberations Tuesday night. If there is progress, another negotiating team will head back to Qatar, the sources said.
Over the past week, Israeli and Palestinian officials indicated a deal could be reached, saying the remaining gaps between the sides had narrowed, though crucial differences have yet to be resolved.
One key gap is that Hamas has still not provided Israel with a list of living or dead hostages that would be exchanged in the deal, and Channel 12 reported on Wednesday that Israeli officials have said the talks cannot proceed until they are given the list of names.
People protest for the release of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip outside the home of Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer in Jerusalem, December 23, 2024. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
Lazar Berman contributed to this report.
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