BREAKING: Until the Last One
Netanyahu Draws Hard Line on Gaza Deal: Hostage Release Must Be Clause One to 21
Netanyahu sets firm condition on US-backed peace plan: All Israeli hostages must be freed before implementing any other clauses of the 21-point framework for ending Gaza war.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly declared that the complete return of all Israeli hostages held in Gaza is the sole, non-negotiable precondition for implementing any other part of the proposed U.S.-backed peace framework.
The declaration, made amid global pressure to accept the American-led "21-clause plan" for ending the war, effectively re-prioritizes the entire diplomatic process, placing Israel’s most urgent humanitarian demand, the return of every captive, living and deceased, above all political and security concessions.
Netanyahu stated unequivocally:
"We will not move to any of the 21 clauses in the plan until the first clause - the release of all the hostages, living and dead, until the last hostage, all of them, have not crossed into Israeli territory, we will not move to any other clause."
The Israeli Prime Minister added:
"If the deadline set by President Trump does not result in the release of the hostages, Israel will return to fighting with full backing from all involved countries." Netanyahu also states that "The Palestinian Authority won’t rule Gaza. No Hamas or PA officials will govern."
Isolating the Hostage Clause
The Prime Minister’s statement is a strategic move to leverage the comprehensive U.S. proposal, led by President Donald Trump, while simultaneously containing its politically explosive final clauses. The 21-point plan outlines a path that includes:
By insisting that Clause One (the hostage release) must be executed before any subsequent clause is even addressed, Netanyahu is attempting to decouple the emotional urgency of the captives' return from the contentious long-term issues that could fracture his hardline coalition.
Internal and External Pressure
The Prime Minister faces intense pressure from multiple fronts:
The move signals that while Israel is prepared to accept the framework as a vehicle for achieving the release of its citizens, it retains the right to halt the process, or demand revisions, the moment the first stage is complete, thereby retaining control over the politically sensitive security and political clauses that follow.