Netanyahu’s Allies Reject Any Talk on Establishment of Palestinian State

A photo from southern Israel of destroyed buildings in Gaza (AFP)
A photo from southern Israel of destroyed buildings in Gaza (AFP)
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Netanyahu’s Allies Reject Any Talk on Establishment of Palestinian State

A photo from southern Israel of destroyed buildings in Gaza (AFP)
A photo from southern Israel of destroyed buildings in Gaza (AFP)

Israeli government officials and spokespersons have called on Israeli public opinion and the Tel Aviv government to adopt a categorical rejection of “any talk about establishing a Palestinian state,” considering that the creation of such a state would be a “prize for extremists.”

These calls came amid mounting international and Arab pressure on Israel to accept a settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the basis of the two-state solution, and achieve progress in the truce talks and prisoner exchange.

Hamas, for its part, insists on a complete withdrawal of the Israeli army from Gaza before reaching an agreement.

Far-right extremist ministers, Itamar Ben Gvir, Minister of National Security, and Bezalel Smotrich, Minister of Finance, issued sharp statements on Thursday.

Ben Gvir said on X: “1,400 Israelis have been killed, and the world wants to give them a state... This will not happen.”

“In no way will we agree to this plan that says the Palestinians deserve a reward for the massacre they committed against us,” Smotrich said on the same platform.

He added that he would ask the war cabinet to vote against this idea, “by issuing a clear decision stating that Israel opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state.”

“I expect clear support from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Benny Gantz, Gadi Eisenkot and all ministers,” Smotrich emphasized.

In the same context, Avi Hyman, Netanyahu’s spokesman, also announced that the government rejects any discussion of the issue of a Palestinian state.

He said: “This is not the time when we are discussing giving gifts to the Palestinian people.”

Education Minister Yoav Kisch, from the Likud Party, stated: “Any talk about granting this award...does not concern us and we are not partners in it.”



Rubio Says US Hostage Envoy’s Direct Meeting with Hamas Was ‘One-Off’

Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler speaks during a US hostage and wrongful detainee flag raising ceremony at the State Department in Washington, DC, on March 6, 2025. (AFP)
Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler speaks during a US hostage and wrongful detainee flag raising ceremony at the State Department in Washington, DC, on March 6, 2025. (AFP)
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Rubio Says US Hostage Envoy’s Direct Meeting with Hamas Was ‘One-Off’

Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler speaks during a US hostage and wrongful detainee flag raising ceremony at the State Department in Washington, DC, on March 6, 2025. (AFP)
Envoy for Hostages Adam Boehler speaks during a US hostage and wrongful detainee flag raising ceremony at the State Department in Washington, DC, on March 6, 2025. (AFP)

President Donald Trump's hostage envoy Adam Boehler's direct meetings with Palestinian militant group Hamas on the release of hostages in Gaza was a "one-off situation" and as of now "hasn't borne fruit," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday.

"That was a one-off situation in which our special envoy for hostages, whose job it is to get people released, had an opportunity to talk directly to someone who has control over these people and was given permission and encouraged to do so. He did so," Rubio told reporters en route to Saudi Arabia.

"As of now, it hasn't borne fruit. Doesn't mean he was wrong to try, but our primary vehicle for negotiations on this front will continue to be Mr. Witkoff and the work he's doing through Qatar," Rubio said, in reference to Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff.

The discussions between Boehler and Hamas broke with a decades-old policy by Washington against negotiating with groups the US brands as terrorist organizations.

A senior Hamas official on Sunday told Reuters that the meetings between Hamas leaders and Boehler in recent days focused on the release of an American-Israeli dual national being held by the group in Gaza.

Boehler told CNN on Sunday that the talks were "very helpful" and, in an interview with Israel's N12 TV channel, he said that the Trump administration was focused on getting all the remaining 59 hostages out and ending the war.

Witkoff told reporters at the White House last week that gaining the release of Edan Alexander, a 21-year-old from New Jersey believed to be the last living American hostage held by Hamas in Gaza, was a "top priority for us".

Hamas carried out a cross-border raid into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering an Israeli offensive into the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.

Hamas fighters killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.