Netanyahu rejects reports about imminent Gaza cease-fire, hostage swap deal

WASHINGTON

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday dismissed reports that a cease-fire and hostage swap deal was nearing completion, calling the claims "exactly inaccurate," contradicting statements by US officials.

"There's a story, a narrative out there that there's a deal out there … that’s just a false narrative," Netanyahu said in an interview with US-based Fox News.

"There’s not a deal in the making," he said, "Unfortunately, it’s not close."

Netanyahu’s remarks were in response to reports citing a senior US administration official who claimed that 90% of the terms of a cease-fire and hostage exchange deal had been agreed upon.

Briefing reporters Wednesday, the official said the deal, which has been under negotiation for months, consists of 18 paragraphs, 14 of which are “finished” though critical issues related to a prisoner exchange and the Philadelphi Corridor remain unresolved.

US President Joe Biden also said this weekend that "we’re on the verge of having an agreement".

Netanyahu also claimed that Israel had accepted several cease-fire proposals from US, Egyptian and Qatari negotiators while accusing the Palestinian group, Hamas, of not cooperating.

Hamas, meanwhile, accused Netanyahu of obstructing efforts to secure a cease-fire by insisting on retaining control over the Philadelphi Corridor -- a strip of land that runs along Gaza's border with Egypt.

Netanyahu, earlier in the week, reaffirmed his stance that Israeli forces would not withdraw from the corridor, citing previous incidents where weapons were allegedly smuggled to Hamas through the route.

Israel's continued presence in the corridor remains a major obstacle in finalizing an agreement with Hamas, as the group and Egypt strongly oppose it.

This has blocked efforts to end the war in the Gaza Strip and reach a cease-fire and hostage swap deal which has been negotiated through Egyptian, Qatari and American mediators for months.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack, which killed 1.139 people, according to Israeli figures.

Since then, more than 40,800 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed and nearly 94,400 injured, according to local health authorities.