Israel rejects a comprehensive deal with Hamas and reaffirms its determination to continue the war.

Israel announced on Wednesday its refusal to end the war through a comprehensive deal with Hamas, reaffirming its intention to continue the aggression against the Gaza Strip, unless the movement agrees to its conditions, including its security control over the sector.

This came through a series of statements from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and officials in his government, including Defense Minister Israel Katz, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

Hours after U.S. President Donald Trump called on Hamas on Wednesday to "immediately" release all twenty Israeli hostages (alive), promising that "things will change quickly," the movement renewed its readiness to go for a comprehensive deal with Israel.

The movement added in a statement: "Hamas is still waiting for the response of the Zionist enemy to the proposal presented by the mediators to the movement on August 18, which was accepted by the movement and the Palestinian factions."

It continued: "We affirm our readiness for a comprehensive deal under which all enemy prisoners held by the resistance will be released, in exchange for an agreed number of Palestinian prisoners held by the occupation, as part of an agreement that ends the war on Gaza, withdraws all occupation forces from the entire sector, opens the crossings to bring in all the needs of the sector, and starts the reconstruction process."

Following the movement's statement, Netanyahu's office claimed that "this is just another maneuver by Hamas, with nothing new in it." He added: "The war can end immediately on the terms set by the security cabinet (the cabinet)."

These conditions, according to Netanyahu's office, include "the release of all hostages (prisoners), disarming Hamas, and Israeli security control over the sector, and forming an alternative civilian government."

He stated, "These conditions alone will prevent Hamas from rearming and repeating the massacre of October 7, time and again, as promised."

For his part, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz claimed in a statement from his office that "Hamas continues to deceive and repeat empty words, but it will soon realize that it has to choose between two options."

Katz added: "Accepting Israel's conditions to end the war, the most important of which is the release of all hostages and dismantling its weapons, or turning (the city of) Gaza into a version of (the cities of) Rafah (south) and Beit Hanoun (north)."

He concluded by saying: "The Israeli army is fully prepared."

In a related context, Israeli Finance Minister Smotrich stated in a statement: "The matter is very simple: the return of all hostages, disarming Hamas, stripping Gaza of weapons, establishing a security zone, and allowing Israeli operations in the sector in the long term."

Smotrich continued: "This is the minimum to end the war. Nothing less than that. We will achieve it, either through Hamas's surrender and acceptance of these conditions, or by destroying it in the war soon."

In the same vein, far-right National Security Minister Ben Gvir said: "In order not to have to respond to Hamas's hollow statements, there should be no Hamas."

He continued in a statement: "This should be the only response to them... the choice between complete surrender with complete disarmament, voluntary migration from the sector, and the immediate return of all hostages – without any compensation like releasing thousands of prisoners from jails, or you will be completely destroyed."

In contrast, Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said on the platform of the American company "X": "The Israeli government is not obliged to accept Hamas's conditions, but is obliged to return to negotiations immediately and seek to conclude a deal."

He continued: "It is impossible not to even try to bring our hostages home."

Tel Aviv estimates that there are 48 Israeli hostages in Gaza, of whom 20 are alive, while more than 10,800 Palestinians are imprisoned, suffering from torture, starvation, and medical neglect, with many having died, according to Palestinian and Israeli human rights and media reports.

On August 18, Hamas accepted a proposal from mediators regarding a partial ceasefire and prisoner exchange in Gaza, but Israel did not respond to the mediators, despite the alignment of its terms with a previous proposal put forth by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, which Tel Aviv had accepted.

Instead, Netanyahu is pushing for the occupation of the city of Gaza under the pretext of releasing the prisoners and defeating Hamas, amid significant skepticism about the feasibility of achieving this from opponents and former officials, and the Israeli army confirming