Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel would not agree to a ceasefire after six months of war against Hamas in Gaza until the hostages being held in Gaza are released.
His comments made at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting came as a new round of truce talks in Egypt are set to begin.
Netanyahu said that despite growing international pressure, Israel would not give in to "extreme" demands from Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas, which sparked the war on Oct. 7 with its deadly attack on southern Israel.