In a televised address on Friday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu called the newly approved hostage-ceasefire deal a triumph of Israeli resolve, crediting a mix of �relentless military pressure� and �unwavering diplomacy� � including help from U.S. President Donald Trump � for forcing Hamas to agree to release the remaining captives and end the Gaza war.

�I believed that if we applied heavy military pressure, combined with heavy diplomatic pressure, we would absolutely be able to return all of our hostages,� Netanyahu said from his office in Jerusalem. �And that is exactly what we did.�

The prime minister, who has faced growing pressure and condemnation at home and abroad over the war�s duration and humanitarian toll, said he was unmoved by both domestic dissent and international caution.

�There was pressure not to go into Rafah, not to take the Philadelphi Corridor, not to operate in other theaters � to end the war and leave Gaza while Hamas, Hezbollah, and others were at the height of their power,� he said. �But one consideration guided my decisions: the security of Israel.�

Netanyahu dismissed claims that the agreement � which will see the release of all hostages in exchange for a permanent ceasefire and the freeing of Palestinian prisoners � could have been reached months earlier. �Hamas never agreed to release all of our hostages while we remain deep inside the Strip,� he said. �Hamas agreed to the deal only when it felt the sword resting on its neck � and it is still on its neck.�

He credited the IDF�s advance into Gaza City and what he described as �massive diplomatic pressure from our big friend President Trump� for shifting the balance. �This powerful combination caused Hamas to give back all of our hostages while the IDF remains deep inside the Strip and holds all the key positions,� Netanyahu said, promising that later stages of the deal would lead to Hamas�s full disarmament and Gaza�s demilitarization.

�If this is achieved the easy way, great,� he warned. �And if not, it will be achieved the hard way.�

The prime minister thanked Trump �for his world leadership and his unceasing efforts� in forging the deal, calling him �a true friend of our people.� He also named Trump�s envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, along with Israel�s Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, for their roles in the talks.

Netanyahu took direct aim at critics who said freeing all the hostages without full IDF withdrawal was impossible. �They said there is no way to bring back the rest of the hostages without giving in to Hamas�s demand � that the IDF leave the Strip, the buffer zone, the Philadelphi corridor,� he said. �They were wrong.�

He said Israel�s broader objectives remain unchanged: eliminating the Iranian threat and dismantling what he called �the Iranian axis,� which he said includes Hamas and Hezbollah. �That means achieving the goals of the war � returning the hostages, removing the ballistic and nuclear threat from Iran, and breaking the Iranian axis,� Netanyahu said.

Netanyahu pledged to locate and return the bodies of slain hostages �for a Jewish burial,� calling it a �holy obligation of mutual responsibility.� He paid tribute to IDF soldiers and the families of the fallen, promising that Israel�s struggle �is not yet over.�

�The Simchat Torah holiday two years ago turned into a day of national mourning,� he said. �This Simchat Torah will turn, God willing, into a day of national happiness � happiness over the return of all our brothers and sisters.�

As he closed, Netanyahu asserted that Israel�s campaign had �achieved massive victories, victories that are changing the face of the Middle East,� while warning that �significant challenges remain� even as new �opportunities to expand the circle of peace� emerge.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)