Israeli president ready to back Netanyahu on Biden's Gaza proposal

Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced his support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, contingent on Netanyahu’s agreement to US President Joe Biden’s proposal for a deal between Israel and Hamas aiming to bring an end to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, Anadolu news agency reported.

“I told Prime Minister that I will give him and the government my full support for a deal which will see the release of the hostages,” wrote Herzog on X.

“We must not forget that according to Jewish tradition, there is no greater commandment than redeeming captives and hostages – especially when it comes to Israeli citizens who the State of Israel was not able to defend and protect,” he added.

Herzog stressed that “it is our inherent obligation to bring them home within the framework of a deal that preserves the security interests of the State of Israel.”

US President Joe Biden said Friday that Israel presented the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, with a three-phase deal that would end hostilities in the besieged Gaza Strip and secure the release of hostages held in the coastal enclave.

Biden appealed to Hamas to accept the deal and urged Netanyahu to resist pressure from the members of his governing coalition opposed to the plan.

Netanyahu’s office reiterated Friday his intention to continue the country’s offensive in Gaza until all of Tel Aviv’s war goals are achieved.

Hamas said it would “respond positively to any proposal that includes a permanent cease-fire, a full withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, reconstruction efforts, the return of the displaced, and the completion of a comprehensive hostage exchange deal.”

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza following a Hamas attack on 7 October 2023, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire.

Israel has been waging a brutal offensive against Gaza since October, despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire. The offensive has killed at least 36,400 Palestinians, mainly children and women, and wounded over 80,000 others.

Nearly eight months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of “genocide” at the ICJ, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza. According to South Africa, which took the occupation state to the ICJ, Israel is ignoring the court’s orders.

READ: Calls to action for Gaza ‘have been predominantly going to deaf ears’: WFP