Netanyahu demands return of all 240 hostages before ceasefire while calls from world community urging halt on attacks growing n Israeli minister condemned for suggesting use of nuclear bomb on Gaza.

JERUSALEM  -  Israel yesterday rejected growing calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, with military specialists saying that forces are set to intensify their operations against Hamas, with no timeframe set for their activities. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has demanded return of all 240 hostages captured by Hamas.

“There will be no ceasefire without the return of the hostages. This should be completely removed from the lexicon,” Netanyahu told crews at the Ramon air force base in southern Israel, reiterating the government’s long-standing position.

“We say this to our friends and to our enemies. We will simply continue until we defeat them. We have no alternative.”

According to latest reports, Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip have resulted in the deaths of over 9,770 Palestinians, including approximately 4,800 children, according to the spokesperson for the Gaza Strip’s Health Ministry, Ashraf Al- Qudra. Gaza health officials said more than 9,770 Palestinians have been killed in the current war, which began when Hamas launched a surprise attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,400 people and taking more than 240 hostages.

Israel’s military has used a combination of ground troops, together with air and navy power to pound Gaza and deepen its incursions into the narrow coastal strip, aiming to destroy Hamas infrastructure and kill senior leaders, as well as its command and control systems.

The forces have penetrated deep into Gaza, surrounding Gaza City and engaging in close urban combat with Hamas fighters, which would make breaking off contact to allow a temporary cessation of hostilities risky and uncertain, Israeli military sources said.

“They don’t work with the clock in their hands and the order is to do the job professionally, step by step to try to avoid any casualties even though nothing is for free,” Itamar Yaar, former deputy head of Israel’s National Security Council, told the media.

Yaar, who is now manager of the Commanders for Israel’s Security group of former senior defence officials, said at present the military was not facing the same time pressures as in previous operations in Gaza. A Palestinian telecommunications company meanwhile reported that communications and internet services have been completely cut off in Gaza once again. On the other side, foreign ministers from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Amman, Jordan and urged him to persuade Israel to agree to a ceasefire.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas demanded an immediate ceasefire earlier when he met Blinken during the top US diplomat’s unannounced visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank. 

Blinken, in the region for a second time in less than a month as part of US efforts to prevent the Israel-Hamas war from spreading, has rejected ceasefire calls.

He has said a ceasefire would only allow Hamas to regroup, but has been trying to convince Israel to agree to location-specific pauses that would allow much-needed aid to be distributed within Gaza.

Pope Francis made an urgent plea for a halt to the conflict in Gaza on Sunday, calling for humanitarian aid and help for those injured to ease the “very grave” situation.

“I keep thinking about the grave situation in Palestine and Israel where many people have lost their lives. I pray for you to stop in the name of God, cease the fire,” he said, speaking to crowds in St. Peter’s Square after his weekly Angelus prayer. “I hope that all will be done to avoid the conflict from widening, that the injured will be rescued, and aid will reach the population of Gaza, where the humanitarian situation is very grave,” he continued.

“Let’s think about the children, all the children involved in this war, like in Ukraine and other conflicts; their future is being killed,” he added.

Israeli security sources said Israel could be open to a limited pause in fighting for a few hours, depending on the circumstances on the ground. 

“The achievable target will be to damage it (Hamas’ military capability) significantly but not to eliminate it completely,” Avi Issacharoff, an Israeli military commentator, told reporters.

“At some point Israel will agree to some kind of halt, but for hours not for days, not more than that. If it will be for more than a few hours, the Israeli public will crucify our government and our prime minister.”

Hamas will only release the hostages if Israel frees all Palestinian prisoners, Abu Ubaida, the spokesperson for the Izz el- Deen al-Qassam Brigades, said last week. 

Hamas can also hold talks over a “partial” agreement over the captives, he added. 

Meanwhile, Israeli Heritage minister Amichay Eliyahu found himself in hot waters after suggesting the use of a nuclear bomb on Gaza, adding that the government should treat own their hostages as collateral damage and bomb Gaza. 

The heritage minister faced suspension from government meetings “until further notice” on Sunday, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office reacted to his comments. Amichay Eliyahu, a member of Netanyahu’s ruling coalition and an ultranationalist politician, made these remarks during an interview on Israel’s Kol Barama radio. He expressed dissatisfaction with the scale of Israel’s response to the October 7 attacks by Hamas, even if it meant risking the lives of hostages in Gaza. When asked whether he supported the idea of using “some kind of atomic bomb” in Gaza to “kill everyone,” Eliyahu responded, “That’s one option.” Netanyahu’s office issued a statement, characterising Eliyahu’s comments as “disconnected from reality”. In a follow-up question regarding the estimated 240 hostages in Gaza, Eliyahu asserted that “in war, we pay a price.”