Netanyahu's office statements smokescreen, deception: Exclusive
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Private sources in the Palestinian Resistance deny to Al Mayadeen that the Israeli PM has given new instructions to the Israeli negotiating delegation.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chairs a cabinet meeting at the Kirya military base, which houses the Israeli Security Ministry, in Tel Aviv, on December 24, 2023. (AP)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not given any new instructions to the Israeli negotiating delegation regarding a ceasefire in Gaza and a prisoner exchange deal, private sources in the Palestinian Resistance told Al Mayadeen on Monday.
The sources emphasized that the statements issued by Netanyahu's office are nothing but smokescreen and deception.
The Israeli premier's office said Sunday that a negotiating team would leave Thursday – the day after Netanyahu gives a speech to the United States Congress – for new talks, without specifying its destination.
A brief statement claimed that Netanyahu held "an in-depth discussion" with the negotiation team and senior security officials regarding the issue of captives held by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza.
Israeli channel Kan 11's political affairs commentator, Gili Cohen, highlighted that Netanyahu's office's announcement came "at the end of exceptional security consultations that lasted six hours and addressed the issue of the Israeli document for a prisoner deal, a ceasefire, and other strategic issues."
Cohen mentioned that Israeli officials who have taken part in the consultation were Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, Mossad Chief David Barnea, and Shin Bet Chief Ronen Bar.
Major General of the Reserve Force Nitzan Alon and Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer also partially participated in the talks, the correspondent added. She noted that the group represented a cabinet similar to the war cabinet, which would head to the Qatari capital, Doha, headed by Barnea.
Reportedly, the agenda included the repercussions of a prisoner exchange deal and ceasefire agreement on the Northern Front [against Hezbollah] and the issue with the Yemeni Armed Forces, in addition to strategic affairs.
Since October 8, 2023, Hezbollah's Resistance fighters have been targeting Israeli occupation forces and military sites along the border with occupied Palestine, in support of the people of Gaza and the Palestinian Resistance. The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon has reiterated that it will suspend its operations against Israeli targets once the ongoing aggression on the Gaza Strip comes to an end.
This also comes as the Yemeni Armed Forces (YAF) recently carried out a major operation against an Israeli important site in the occupied Palestinian city of Yafa [Tel Aviv] with a drone that evaded Israeli air defenses. The YAF also declared Tel Aviv to be a strike zone and a primary target for future operations.
"The discussion with the prime minister was a strategic discussion that lasted several hours and addressed the possibility of a prisoner deal, but also the situation on all fronts, because it is clear to everyone that a prisoner deal in Gaza is the first step in the initiation of negotiations and the cornerstone that affects the entire region," pointed out Alon Ben David, Israeli Channel 13's military affairs commentator.
He suggested that without a prisoner exchange deal, settlers would not return to the North, amid diminishing trust in the Israeli security and military establishment, while Netanyahu continues focusing on Gaza until the US presidential elections in November are concluded.
Read more: Conflicting reports on fate of Israeli response to Gaza deal emerge
