Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is aligning with the stance of US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, declaring Friday afternoon that Israel will "explore other options to bring back the hostages held by Hamas."
The move follows Witkoff's sharp criticism Thursday of the terrorist organization, which he accused of stalling efforts to reach a hostage deal. Witkoff, who serves as Trump's envoy to the Middle East, said the US would examine alternative means of securing the hostages' release. However, neither he nor Netanyahu has clarified what those alternative options might be.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Friday, Trump said Hamas is not genuinely interested in reaching a ceasefire or releasing hostages held in Gaza.
"They pulled out of the negotiations, which was very unfortunate," Trump said. "Hamas never really wanted a deal. I think they want to die, and that's very bad. We've reached a point where the job needs to be finished. They made demands. We released many hostages. Now we're down to the last hostages, and they know what's going to happen when those last hostages are freed. That's why they're refusing a deal. I saw it happen. They walked away from the talks, and now there will be fighting. We'll need to clean them out. We'll need to get rid of them."
Netanyahu echoed those sentiments, saying, "Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff got it right. Hamas is the obstacle to a hostage release deal. Together with our U.S. allies, we are now considering alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas's terror rule, and secure lasting peace for Israel and our region."
