Israel considers expelling Hamas leaders from Gaza: Premier Netanyahu

By Anadolu staff

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that his government is considering expelling Hamas leaders from the Gaza Strip after the end of the war, on the condition of the movement's "surrender" first.

“The idea of exile is there. We can always discuss it. But I think the most important thing is (Hamas’s) surrender,” Netanyahu told a podcast aired by the American Jewish journalist Dan Senor on Sunday evening, according to Israel’s public broadcaster.

He reiterated his rejection of any continued presence of Hamas leaders in the Gaza Strip after the end of the war, hoping that local residents who do not belong to Hamas, alongside officials from the region, will rule the strip.

“This war could be over tomorrow if Hamas lays down its arms and surrenders and returns the hostages,” he said and added. “It's up to them.”

When asked about criticisms that the hostage issue was not the first priority, he said that Hamas’ demands are unacceptable, and the US also said there is no agreement because of Hamas.

Netanyahu’s latest choice of expelling Hamas comes as the Israeli army has not yet achieved its objectives in its ongoing war on the Gaza Strip, which is to eliminate the movement and bring back the hostages.

More than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 78,000 others injured in a brutal Israeli onslaught on the Gaza Strip since an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7 last year that killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

In an interim ruling in January, The Hague-based International Court of Justice (ICJ) said it is "plausible" that Tel Aviv is committing genocide in Gaza, ordering it to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in the enclave.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio in Istanbul