Israel says Trump’s Middle East visit is the ‘window of opportunity’ for hostage deal

A elder Israeli defence authoritative connected Monday said President Donald Trump's upcoming sojourn to the Middle East is the "window of opportunity" to unafraid a hostage deal, different Israel volition initiate a caller subject cognition successful the Gaza Strip.

"If determination is nary hostage deal, Operation 'Gideon Chariots' volition statesman with large strength and volition not halt until each its goals are achieved," the authoritative said according to a Reuters report successful notation to a Sunday nighttime determination by Israel’s information furniture to grow operations successful the Gaza Strip.

Israel volition usage the astir 10-day clip framework to hole for its caller operations, which volition entail calling up tens of thousands of reserve troops with the extremity of taking implicit each the Gaza Strip.

 ISRAEL APPROVES PLAN TO CAPTURE ALL OF GAZA, CALLS UP TENS OF THOUSANDS OF RESERVE TROOPS

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, with Defense Minister Israel Katz. (Israeli PM's Office)

In an evident determination to antagonistic the panic radical Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces volition stay successful captured territory alternatively than retreat forces aft an cognition is complete. Israel has not presented a program for however agelong it intends to inhabit the Palestinian lands successful a determination that violated U.N.-brokered treaties and internationally recognized borders. 

A spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not respond to Fox News Digital’s questions. 

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said successful a connection that the program approved by the furniture to inhabit territory and prolong Israel's beingness successful Gaza should beryllium named the "Smotrich-Netanyahu plan" to "give up connected the hostages and Israel's information and nationalist resilience." 

In the statement, the forum said that this program is an admittance by the authorities that it is choosing territories implicit freeing the hostages and noted that much than 70% of Israelis person opposed subject prioritization implicit hostages successful caller polling.

Trump had planned to marque his travel to the Middle East, wherever helium volition sojourn Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates betwixt May 13 and 16, his archetypal planetary sojourn since re-entering the White House, to signify the value of the portion to the U.S.

While this volition inactive beryllium a large geopolitical visit, his archetypal planetary travel ended up being his sojourn to Italy for Pope Francis’ funeral, wherever helium held adjacent discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

Neither the White House nor the State Department instantly responded to Fox News Digital’s questions regarding Israel’s progressively assertive presumption and however it is impacting hostage and bid woody negotiations. 

PARENTS OF HAMAS HOSTAGES URGE TRUMP TO BE 'TOUGH WITH ENEMIES AND FRIENDS' AMID ISRAELI SIEGE IN GAZA

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, meets with then-President-elect Donald Trump's Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. (Photo by Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

Comments made by Netanyahu past week sent ceasefire negotiators reeling aft he, for the archetypal time, confirmed that returning the hostages taken by Hamas astir 580 days agone connected Oct. 7, 2023 was not his apical priority.

"We person galore objectives, galore goals successful this war. We privation to bring backmost each of our hostages," Netanyahu said. "That is simply a precise important goal. In war, determination is simply a ultimate objective. And that ultimate nonsubjective is triumph implicit our enemies. And that is what we volition achieve."

The Israeli premier curate besides connected Saturday justified his progressively assertive operations successful Gaza that person resulted successful the decease of much than 50,000 successful the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, including more than 15,600 children arsenic of late-March, arsenic "a warfare betwixt civilization and barbarism."

The gathering belonging to the Berbag household was destroyed aft an Israeli attack, leaving respective Palestinians, including children, dormant and wounded successful Khan Yunis, Gaza, connected Aug. 2, 2024. (Photo by Abed Rahim Khatib/Anadolu via Getty Images)

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Qatar, which has been heavy progressive successful hostage negotiations and ceasefire efforts, responded successful a Saturday station connected societal media and said the comments "fall abbreviated of the astir basal standards of governmental and motivation responsibility."

"Portraying the ongoing aggression against Gaza arsenic a defence of ‘civilization’ echoes the rhetoric of regimes passim past that person utilized mendacious narratives to warrant crimes against guiltless civilians," said Majed Al Ansari, advisor to Qatar Prime Minister Mohammad Al-Thani and spokesperson for the overseas ministry. 

Ansari did not instantly respond to Fox News Digital’s questions. 

Fox News' Yael Rotem-Kuriel contributed to this report.