Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reaffirmed his government's intention to fully reoccupy besieged Gaza, dismissed any agreement to end the war, and brushed aside any speculations of a rift with US President Donald Trump. "There are certainly 20 hostages still alive in Gaza and up to 38 others believed to have been killed," he said on Wednesday during a press conference at his office in West Jerusalem.

The Palestinian group Hamas has repeatedly expressed its readiness to release Israeli captives in a single exchange in return for an end to the war, an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, and the release of Palestinian prisoners. Netanyahu has rejected those terms, instead demanding the disarmament of Palestinian resistance factions and insisting on the full reoccupation of Gaza. He also laid out his conditions for ending the war: the return of all Israeli hostages, the removal of the Hamas leadership from Gaza, and the complete disarmament of the group.

Netanyahu claimed that once these goals are achieved, Israel would move to implement the so-called Trump Plan -- widely interpreted as a framework for the relocation of Palestinians from Gaza. Netanyahu also dismissed speculation of a falling out with the US administration following a visit to the Gulf by Trump that left out Israel. Trump's visit to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates hauled in a series of big-ticket business deals, but fuelled widespread media commentary pointing out that Israel, Washington's closest ally in the region, had not been included.

The visit followed Trump's decision to end a US bombing campaign against the Houthis in Yemen. Netanyahu, who had previously made no public comment on the issue, told reporters at a news conference that he told him: "'Bibi, I want you to know, I have a complete commitment to you and I have a complete commitment to the state of Israel.'" Amid growing international pressure on Israel, Trump has urged a quick end to the war in Gaza and spoken of the suffering of civilians in the besieged enclave, where an 11-week Israeli aid blockade has created a deep humanitarian crisis.

In a separate conversation a few days ago, Netanyahu said US Vice President J.D. Vance had told him: "'Don't pay attention to all these fake news stories about this rupture between us'". 

(IANS)