Netanyahu: Gaza Rebuild Hinges on Full Disarmament
His comments emerged during a press briefing at his office in West Jerusalem, one day following confirmation of the recovery of Master Sgt. Ran Gvili's remains—the final victim among 251 hostages seized by Hamas and allied Palestinian factions during the Oct. 7, 2023 assault on Israel.
Netanyahu has consistently leveraged the hostage situation to justify delaying implementation of the second stage of US President Donald Trump's framework for the Palestinian enclave.
Monday saw the Israeli army retrieve Gvili's remains following examination of 250 bodies located in a northern Gaza cemetery.
"We are now focused on achieving the two remaining objectives together: disarming Hamas and demilitarizing Gaza. There are only two options — the easy path or the hard path — and we will not allow the reconstruction of Gaza before it is disarmed," said Netanyahu.
Addressing the Rafah border crossing reopening, he stated: "We agreed to open the crossing for individuals only and in limited numbers, and everyone entering or leaving will be subject to Israeli inspection."
Amid mounting speculation that the US could execute strikes against Iran—potentially triggering counterattacks—Netanyahu warned: "If Iran makes a grave mistake and attacks Israel, we will respond with a force it has never seen before."
Netanyahu canceled a scheduled security consultation Tuesday with opposition leader Yair Lapid concerning Iran and Gaza, attributing the cancellation to scheduling conflicts, Israeli media reported.
Regarding maintaining the electoral calendar and advancing budget legislation amid tensions with ultra-Orthodox Jewish (Haredi) communities, Netanyahu remarked: "That is what I hope for and what I am working toward. The last thing Israel needs right now is elections."
Haredi representatives in Israel's Knesset have blocked budget approval pending passage of conscription legislation exempting their constituents from mandatory military service.
Without budget ratification by March, the Knesset faces automatic dissolution, triggering snap elections.
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