“It’s the only way to win the war”

Wrongly claims Hamas handed over hostages after taking control of Philadelphia and Rafah

September 4 (EUROPA PRESS) –

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on Thursday that he wanted to keep the army in the Philadelphia corridor, as it was the only option to achieve the war’s objectives. “Leaving there will not bring the hostages home,” he said at a press conference for foreign media.

“If we want to bring back the hostages, we have to control the Philadelphia corridor,” said Prime Minister Netanyahu, who said that this area has served for years as a route for smuggling weapons from Iran, despite the passivity of the Egyptian authorities.

“When our army left Gaza in 2005, the Philadelphia corridor became a smuggling area for weapons supplied by Iran,” he said, stressing that the destruction of Hamas now and in the future, as well as the release of the hostages, depends on keeping this area under control.

Netanyahu has stressed that the location of the Philadelphia corridor has been crucial for Hamas to rearm itself in preparation for the attacks of October 7 and has assured that if it is not controlled, it could also be used to smuggle hostages to Iran and even Yemen.

“If we leave the Philadelphia corridor, we will not be able to return. We left Lebanon 24 years ago and we were told that we could return if we were hit by missiles, but we were unable to because of global pressure,” he said.

“We will not abandon the Philadelphia corridor even during the 42-day period included in the proposed swap deal. We do not want to leave Gaza and then return. Rather, we want to stay. I am committed to returning the hostages, but abandoning Philadelphia will not achieve that,” he stressed.

Netanyahu has criticized the international community for trying to force Israel to give in the same week that “Hamas killed six hostages in cold blood” and has insisted that only military pressure can bring back the rest of the people who remain in the Palestinian group’s captivity.

Netanyahu has said Hamas agreed to hand over some of these people after taking control of the Philadelphia corridor and attacking Rafah. However, there has been no agreement to release hostages since November, long before the large-scale operation in May on the city.