Israeli Hostage Families Heckle Netanyahu As He Seeks 'More Time' For Their Release

In his speech, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to return the hostages but stated that "more time" was required.

Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

Source : Getty

Families of hostages kidnapped by Hamas interrupted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to the country's parliament, news agency AFP reported. In his speech, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised to return the hostages but stated that "more time" was required. He underlined that Israel would not be able to liberate the other hostages in Gaza without military pressure.

“We wouldn't have succeeded up until now to release more than 100 hostages without military pressure. And we won't succeed at releasing all the hostages without military pressure,” PM Netanyahu stated. 

"Military pressure, operational pressure and political pressure and that's why there is one thing we won't do - we will not stop fighting," he said. On this, the families chanted: "Now, Now."

Following the October 7 bombings, Israel claims that Hamas is still holding 129 captives in Palestinian territory. Meanwhile, Israeli troops erroneously murdered three Israeli hostages in Gaza earlier this month.

Earlier, it was claimed that Hamas and affiliated factions had rejected an Egyptian plan to hand up control of the Gaza Strip in exchange for a lasting truce.

Benjamin Netanyahu also told members of his party that Israel will extend its ground attack in Gaza in the coming days, despite international pleas to stop the bloodshed and accept a truce.

After returning from a visit to troops fighting inside Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu stated that the conflict "isn't close to being over."

“We are not stopping. We are continuing to fight and we are expanding the fight in the coming days,” he stated, adding that: “The will be a long battle and it isn't close to finished.”

The conflict has now killed at least 20,674 people in Gaza, the majority of them are women and children, according to the World Health Organisation, and the territory's hospitals are barely operating as people continue to hunger.