Netanyahu: The War in Gaza is Far from Over

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu indicated today, Monday, that "the war in Gaza is far from over," denying what he described as "false media speculation" that his government might call for a ceasefire against the Palestinian Islamic resistance movement (Hamas) in the sector. Netanyahu told members of his Likud party: "We are not about to stop. We will continue fighting, and we will intensify the fighting in the coming days, and the conflict will take a long time and is not close to ending." He added: "Israel will not be able to free the hostages still held in Gaza without military pressure." Netanyahu emphasized that "we would not have succeeded so far in releasing more than 100 hostages without military pressure." It is believed that Hamas and Islamic Jihad are still holding more than 100 hostages out of 240 captured during their attack on towns in Israel on October 7, which they say led to the deaths of 1,200 people.