Netanyahu deliberately complicates truce talks ‘to wink at his political base’: Lapid
Opposition leader Yair Lapid has told Israel’s 103FM radio that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu published a list of non-negotiable conditions for Israel to accept any ceasefire deal for his political games.
“Unnecessary damage … it’s a complicated negotiation even without Netanyahu deliberately complicating it to wink at his political base,” Lapid said.
His comments came a day after he reiterated to the Israeli prime minister that he would guarantee a parliamentary safety net should Netanyahu sign an agreement and therefore lose the support of two far-right ministers.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich oppose any ceasefire deal.
Israeli captive’s family releases video to pressure government over Gaza truce
The family of a captive held in Gaza has allowed the publication of a video that purports to show the soldier, Daniel Gilboa, 19, urging the government to do more for her release.
The footage was shared with the family months ago but had remained unpublished, Israeli media said.
Her mother, Orly Gilboa, told the Israeli Broadcasting Authority she decided to make the footage available to put pressure on Israeli leaders to reach a ceasefire agreement to secure the return of all captives.
In the video, Daniel Gilboa identifies herself as a soldier taken from the Nahal Oz military base on October 7 and says she had been held in the enclave for 107 days.
Majority of Israelis favour deal to end war and return captives: Poll
A majority of Israelis, 56 percent, support a comprehensive agreement to release all captives in exchange for an end to the war and a complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza, according to a survey conducted by the Israel Democracy Institute.
Here are some other findings of the same poll:
- 29.5 percent of Israelis support a deal to release some prisoners in exchange for a temporary cessation of fighting in Gaza.
- Regarding the north, 42 percent of Israelis endorse a political settlement with Hezbollah on the Lebanese border, compared with 38 percent who seek a military solution, even at the cost of serious damage.
- Ten percent of those polled says it was correct to continue fighting on the northern border in its current form, while 10 percent say they had no opinion on the matter.
- With regard to differences within the government coalition, 44 percent of Israelis say that tensions between the ultra-Orthodox parties and other parties in the coalition are the number one reason that could lead to the fall of the government.
