Benjamin Netanyahu stood in front of a giant digital map, that mysteriously erased the West Bank and explained why Israeli forces wouldn’t be leaving Gaza anytime soon.
He has shied away from engaging with Israeli media during the war but was forced to do this press conference under pressure from the huge protests on the country’s streets.
If the thousands gathered outside the Defence Ministry in Tel Aviv were hoping for a sign of compromise, they didn’t get it.
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Netanyahu in front of a map of Gaza during Monday’s news conference. Pic: Reuters
Netanyahu gave no ground, either figuratively or literally. Israel couldn’t and wouldn’t withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor in southern Gaza he declared, and that, tweeted a former IDF spokesman “sealed the hostages’ fate”.
Israel’s prime minister did, for the first time, try and explain his position in detail and said that if Israel withdrew, international pressure would stop them returning.
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If the purpose was to convince sceptical Israeli journalists and an angry public, he failed. He can’t even convince his own defence minister.
He was asked why he agreed to withdraw from the Philadelphi corridor in May but has since changed his demands. He tried to claim he never made such a commitment. Mediators have said differently.
He was challenged on his responsibility for the deaths of hostages but dismissed it as purely the fault of Hamas, an act of a group with no intention of negotiating.
If there was one small glimmer of compromise, it was his concession that “we don’t have to be there with a huge force, we need to be there with a sufficient force”.
Pic: Reuters
Angry protesters are unlikely to have been convinced by Netanyahu’s press conference. Pic: Reuters
Could that give the mediators room to negotiate?
One thing was undisputedly clear: even if the first six-week phase of a ceasefire was agreed, there is no chance of it being extended.
Read more: Who are the six Israeli hostages confirmed dead?
Netanyahu has weathered many storms in his long years as the country’s leader, but none as big as this.
He believes his approach to Gaza is the right one and he is convinced he can ride out this pressure.
Maybe, but his refusal to compromise and the fate of the hostages at stake, he is boxing himself into a corner Israel might never forgive him for.