Report: Israel Backing Off on Hostage Talks After Rejecting Hamas’s Latest Offer
Israel is backing off from Qatari and Egyptian-mediated hostage talks with Hamas after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the Palestinian group’s latest proposal, The Times of Israel reported on Thursday.
An Israeli official told the Times that instead of offering a counter-proposal, Israel will try to get the US to apply pressure on Qatar, although Doha has insisted it’s only a mediator and cannot control Hamas.
“The main target now is to create pressure from the Americans and other countries on Qatar, and from there on Hamas, in addition to the military pressure, to bring them down from their delusional demands,” the Israeli official said.
