The Israeli leader said the country will not “ignore this massacre,” vowing Hamas “will pay a heavy price” for the deaths.
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“We’re going to exact a heavy price from Hamas; I’m not going to tell you what the price is going to be and what we’re going to do; there’s going to be an element of surprise here,” Netanyahu said.
Israel’s military confirmed on Sunday it recovered the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, including Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a native of Berkeley, Calif. The six hostages were shot at close range and died either Thursday or Friday before forces reached them in an underground tunnel in Rafah, according to Israeli health and military officials.
The recovery of their bodies prompted massive protests in Israel on Sunday and Monday. Tens of thousands of Israelis publicly called on Netanyahu to reach a cease-fire and hostage release deal as negotiations have dragged on for months.
Israel’s largest trade union, the Histadrut, called for a general strike to take place Monday in response.
Roughly 250 hostages were taken captive during Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel, which killed more than 1,100 people. About 100 of the hostages were released late last year during a weeklong cease-fire.
FURTHER READING Israel’s retaliatory campaign aimed at neutralizing the threat posed by Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, has resulted in the deaths of over 40,000 Palestinians since early October and has displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians in Gaza, according to reports from local and international health officials.
On Monday, President Biden criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu for not doing enough to secure a hostage deal, telling reporters that mediators are “very close” to presenting a final agreement this week to both Israel and Hamas.
Netanyahu, speaking on Sunday, stated that efforts to free the hostages are “continuing constantly” but accused Hamas of “refusing to engage in genuine negotiations.”
Hamas, on the other hand, has claimed it offered to release the hostages in exchange for a ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and the release of some Palestinian prisoners.
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