The political-security cabinet met for about five hours Monday night but reached no decisions on the second phase of the ceasefire deal with Hamas. Meanwhile, an Israeli delegation traveled to Cairo on Monday to discuss the ongoing implementation of the first phase. The delegation is not expected to address the second phase until it receives instructions from the government.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assured Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich that negotiations on Phase Two of the hostage deal would not proceed without approval from the political-security cabinet and a separate vote. Additionally, Netanyahu pledged to cabinet ministers that the next phase would only be implemented if Hamas were dismantled.
Meanwhile, on Monday night thousands gathered in Hostages Square in Tel Aviv for an emergency rally marking 500 days since October 7. The event, held under the slogan “Get them and us out of hell. Urgent! Above all else,” called for immediate action to secure the release of the remaining hostages.
Yair Horn, a recently released hostage, delivered his first public message at the rally: “Everyone asks me, what do you need? And I answer them: I only need one thing—bring my brother back to me.”
Fellow captivity survivor Daniel Aloni criticized the government’s slow response, stating: “All this time, the state is taking its time. Decision-makers are not in a hurry – they act in stages, in beats. But our enemy does not work in beats. There, in the tunnels, every heartbeat is a cry for life. Every moment they are there is an eternity of suffering, of abuse, of endless fear of death.”
Addressing Israel’s leadership directly, she urged: “You do not have the privilege to delay or to make us get used to this. Your duty is one—to bring everyone back. The living for rehabilitation, the dead for burial.”
During the cabinet meeting that approved the deal with Hamas a few weeks ago, a clause was added at the request of Minister Smotrich and the Religious Zionism Party, stipulating that any discussion on Phase Two would require cabinet approval. In effect, this clause served as a condition for Religious Zionism’s continued participation in the government.
Over the weekend, Kan11 News reported that the mediating countries––Qatar, Egypt, and the US––are ramping up pressure on Israel and Hamas to start negotiations on the second phase of the hostage release and ceasefire deal. These discussions were initially scheduled to begin on the 16th day of the agreement but were suspended when Netanyahu flew to Washington to meet with President Donald Trump at the White House.
Senior Israeli officials believe the likelihood of implementing Phase Two in the near future is low. They told Kan11 News that Hamas is unwilling to disarm and that Israel lacks the political will to proceed with the next phase without dissolving the current government.
Minister Smotrich declared at his party’s Knesset faction meeting that Israel is at a crossroads: either Hamas surrenders or Israel does.
He warned against returning to the pre-war status quo, abandoning Sderot and surrounding communities, and leaving hostages behind. Instead, he urged the Cabinet to adopt President Donald Trump’s proposed outline: issuing Hamas a clear ultimatum to return all hostages, leave Gaza for other countries, and disarm. If Hamas refuses, Smotrich called for a full occupation of Gaza, cutting off all aid, and relocating Gaza’s population while annexing key strategic areas, including northern Gaza and the Philadelphi Corridor.
“It is either us or them. Either we subdue Hamas, or, God forbid, Hamas subdues us,” he declared, stressing that Israel must not halt the war before Hamas is completely destroyed.
Smotrich called on Netanyahu to declare that upon resuming military operations, Israel would seize 10% of Gaza’s territory and extend sovereignty over it. He also demanded a total halt to humanitarian aid and an irreversible expulsion of Gaza’s residents. Additionally, he proposed a policy of territorial annexation in response to any harm to Israeli hostages, stating that for every Israeli captive harmed, Israel should impose sovereignty over an additional 5% of Gaza’s land.
“Mr. Prime Minister, it is time to decide! It is time for victory!” Smotrich concluded.
