JERUSALEM, Sep 4: An Israeli far-right minister stepped up pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday to end negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire aimed at securing the release of hostages.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir called for an end to indirect talks with Hamas, which Israel has accused of executing six hostages whose bodies were found in a Gaza tunnel last week.
"A country whose six hostages are murdered in cold blood does not negotiate with the killers, but ends the talks, stops the transfer of fuel and electricity, and crushes them until they collapse," Ben Gvir wrote on the social media platform X.
Ben Gvir, along with far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, are key members of Netanyahu's coalition government and have steadfastly opposed ceasefire talks, insisting that continuing the war in Gaza is the only way to destroy Hamas. —AFP
