Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday unequivocally rejected Hamas’s latest conditions for a hostage deal, but said he remains open to continuing negotiations to secure the freedom of the 136 hostages still held in Gaza.

Hamas had outlined a three-phased process for a permanent ceasefire, beginning with the release of specific groups of hostages and prisoners and concluding with full withdrawal and the exchange of bodies and remains. However, the proposal hinges on indirect talks and guarantees from international mediators for the ceasefire’s durability.

Addressing the press, Netanyahu commented on the unacceptability of Hamas’s proposal, suggesting that the terms were so unfavorable that they would be rejected universally. “From what I saw, even you would say no,” he told a reporter, arguing that acceding to Hamas’s “illusionary” demands would set the stage for further massacres reminiscent of the deadly attack on October 7.

“There is no other solution than total victory,” Netanyahu said, highlighting the broader threat posed by the “evil axis of Iran and its affiliates.”

Netanyahu also denied reports saying that Israel had agreed to release from prison Palestinians who have been convicted of killing Israelis, saying nobody has “obligated to the crazy terms Hamas is talking about.. including the part about those terrorists with blood on their hands.” He added that there is supposed to be “a process of negotiation through mediators but from what I have seen, Hamas is not there.”

Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri responded to Netanyahu’s remarks, accusing him of political posturing and insisting that Hamas “is prepared to deal with all options.”

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant criticized Hamas’s response as intentionally unacceptable. “Its position will lead to the continuation of the war and send our forces to other places in Gaza soon,” Gallant said, hinting at potential broadening of Israeli military actions in Gaza, particularly near Rafah by the Egyptian border.

However, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, currently in Israel to advance hostage negotiations and a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, offered a more optimistic view.

“There’s a lot of work to be done, but we are very much focused on doing that work and, hopefully, being able to resume the release of hostages that was interrupted so many months ago,” Blinken told Herzog.

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