Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected US calls for the establishment of a Palestinian state and pledged that the attack on Gaza would continue for several months.
In a press conference broadcast on national television, today, Thursday, Dr. said: Netanyahu He spoke in a defiant tone, repeatedly saying that Israel would not stop its attack until it achieved its goals of destroying Israel. agitation The armed group and return all remaining hostages in Gaza to their homeland.
“We will not settle for anything less than absolute victory,” Netanyahu said.
This comes at a time when the United States, Israel's closest ally, urged the country to reduce the intensity of its devastating military attack that killed nearly 25,000 people. PalestiniansAccording to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health.
the we He said the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority, which governs certain areas in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, should be “activated” and returned to Gaza, after it was expelled from the Strip in 2007.
Tulkarm in the Israeli-occupied West Bank
The United States also called for steps toward establishing a Palestinian state.
Speaking on Wednesday, Anthony BlinkenThe US Secretary of State said that the two-state solution is the best way to protect Israel, unite moderate Arab countries and isolate Israel's arch enemy, Iran.
He said at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland that without “a path leading to a Palestinian state” Israel would not have “real security.”
And in the same conference Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said that his country is ready to establish full relations with Israel as part of a political agreement, but this can only happen “through peace for the Palestinians, through a Palestinian state.”
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Netanyahu talks about “any future arrangement”
Netanyahu, head of the far-right government in Israel, has repeatedly opposed the two-state solution, claiming that it would be a launching pad for attacks on his country.
Instead, he said Thursday that Israel “must have security control over the entire territory west of the Jordan River.”
He added: “I say this truth to our American friends, and stop trying to force us into a reality that would endanger the State of Israel.”
White House spokesman John Kirby immediately criticized his comments, vowing that President Joe Biden “will not stop working” toward a two-state solution.
“Obviously we see it differently,” he added.
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US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that despite the differences, the country's support for Israel “remains strong.”
“It's not about the pressure the United States is putting on them to do anything. It's about the United States giving them the opportunity they have,” he said.
Before the Hamas attack on October 7, Israeli citizens were deeply divided over Netanyahu's plan for judicial reform, but the country has since stood behind the war.
It is believed that approximately 130 hostages are still being held by Hamas, according to Israel.
