“Israeli” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu falsely claimed today that Hamas started releasing “Israeli” captives after the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) entered Rafah and Philadelphi Corridor in May.

 

“You know when they started giving us hostages, when we went into Philadelphi, when we went into Rafah, when we controlled the Rafah crossing. That’s when they felt the pressure,” Netanyahu said at a press conference held in English.

 

“The first deal that we got was a result of our [land] invasion , the military pressure we put in. [Hamas] gave us the hostages. After that, they thought we’ll have international pressure turn on Israel, so we won’t have to make any concessions.”

 

“But after [the invasion of] Rafah, they began to change,” he says, apparently referring to Hamas’s July caving of its main demand for an upfront commitment to a permanent ceasefire.

 

“If we leave Rafah, if we leave the Philadelphi Corridor, there won’t be any pressure. We won’t get the hostages,” Netanyahu further claimed.