Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant confirmed today, Sunday, that freeing the hostages held in the Gaza Strip after more than a year of war against the Palestinian Hamas movement will require “painful concessions.”
During an official ceremony in Jerusalem marking the first Hebrew anniversary of the October 7, 2023 attack, Gallant stated: “In the south, Hamas has ceased to function as a military structure, and in the north, Hezbollah continues to receive strikes with its leadership eliminated, most of its missile arsenal destroyed, and its forces retreating from the border” between Lebanon and Israel.
The minister added that “these successes have changed the balance of power between Israel and its enemies and allow us to achieve the war’s objectives,” noting however that “not all objectives can be achieved through military operations alone.”
Gallant indicated that “to fulfill our moral duty to bring our hostages home, we will have to make painful concessions,” as new negotiations between Israeli, American, and Qatari officials are expected to begin today in Doha to discuss the possibility of reaching a ceasefire in Gaza linked to the release of hostages.