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full screen Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shakes hands with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz after a joint press meeting in Jerusalem. Photo: Leo Correa/AP/TT
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is calling for the release of all hostages held by terror-labelled Hamas, followed by a long-term ceasefire.
Scholz’s call comes during a press conference together with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom he met in Jerusalem on Sunday.
– We understand the families of the hostages who say that after more than five months, it is time for a comprehensive hostage agreement to save those who are still captured, says Scholz.
Netanyahu, who most recently on Sunday morning repeated his plans to carry out a ground offensive in hard-hit Rafah in Gaza, says during the same press conference that Israeli forces will not invade the city without civilians first being able to escape.
– Our goal of eliminating remaining terrorist battalions in Rafah goes hand in hand with enabling the civilian population to leave Rafah. There is nothing that we will do while the population is kept locked in place, says the Prime Minister.
Netanyahu also says that Israel will not accept any peace agreement that leaves Israel “weak and unable to defend itself.”