- Netanyahu said on Sunday that the IDF is working to quickly defeat Hamas
- He said it would happen faster than the US taking out al-Qaeda and ISIS
- He predicted that a deal could be on the table for the release of more hostages
Benjamin Netanyahu says his Israeli forces will be able to quickly defeat Hamas terrorists operating from Gaza as he looks ahead to the release of more hostages.
Israel’s prime minister has slammed US efforts to eliminate terrorist organizations Al Qaeda and ISIS, claiming Israel will move faster to defeat Hamas.
It comes as he dodged questions from CNN about whether he would take responsibility for failing to prevent the October 7 terrorist attacks. Many argue that there was an intelligence failure on the part of the Israeli government.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas has been going on for over a month.
“I don’t think it will take as much time as it took for the United States and the international coalition to defeat ISIS or al-Qaeda. It took you many years. I don’t think it will be for many years,” Netanyahu told NBC News host Kristen Welker during a Sunday interview on Meet the Press.
He also claimed that negotiations are underway for the release of more hostages from the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, where Hamas is the de facto government.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the IDF is working to quickly defeat Hamas terrorists, saying this would happen faster than the US could eliminate al-Qaeda and ISIS.
Meanwhile, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said during an interview on ABC This Week that the US believes there should be “no reoccupation of Gaza” after Hamas is defeated by Israel.
‘No reduction in Gaza territory. No forced displacement of Palestinians,” he added.
Netanyahu told NBC that he has set “goals” on the path to defeating Hamas, but claimed he had no specific deadline in mind.
“We are moving as quickly as we can, but also as carefully as we can, because we want to minimize the number of civilian casualties and we want to minimize the number of victims on our side and at the same time maximize the number of victims of the Hamas terrorists ‘ he added.
In the same interview, the Israeli prime minister said there “could be a deal” on Gaza that would see the release of more hostages held by Hamas terrorists – but he did not want to say too much publicly.
“The less I say about it, the more I have increased the chances of it becoming a reality,” Netanyahu said.
“Do you know where all the hostages are currently being held, Mr. Prime Minister?” Welker asked Netanyahu.
He replied, “We know a lot, but I won’t go any further than that.”
Netanyahu predicted on Sunday that a deal may be on the table for the release of more hostages from the Hamas stronghold in war-torn Gaza (photo on November 12)
Asked in a separate interview on CNN’s Sunday program State of the Union about taking responsibility for the failures that led to the October 7 attack, Netanyahu said there would be time for such “difficult” questions once the war is over .
‘We are going to answer all these questions. Right now I think we need to unite the country for one purpose; to achieve victory,” he told CNN host Dana Bash.
“Let’s focus on winning – that’s my responsibility now.”
Pressure has been building on Netanyahu regarding Israel’s failure to anticipate and prepare for the deadliest attack in Israel’s history.
On October 7, Hamas murdered the largest number of Jewish people in one day since the Holocaust.
About 1,400 Israelis were killed in the attacks and 200 were taken hostage.
Sullivan says nine Americans are still missing, even after 32 were killed in the terrorist attacks.