Netanyahu Issues 60-Day Ultimatum from Washington:  Disarm Hamas — or Face the Full Force of Israel Again

By: Fern Sidman

From the diplomatic heart of Washington, DC, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a resolute video address that reasserted Israel’s unwavering commitment to dismantling Hamas and securing the return of hostages still held in the Gaza Strip. The statement, released while Netanyahu was engaged in high-level meetings with American officials, sheds light on the gravity of the moment and clarified Israel’s uncompromising position as the war enters a new and potentially pivotal phase.

In his remarks, covered by Israel National News on Thursday, Netanyahu laid out what he described as Israel’s “minimum conditions” for entering into a permanent ceasefire with Hamas: the full demilitarization of Gaza, the dissolution of Hamas’s governing and military capabilities, and the surrender of weapons by the terrorist organization. Anything short of these outcomes, he made clear, would compel Israel to continue its military campaign by force.

Prime Minister Netanyahu:
‘I am now concluding my historic visit to the USA. We are trying to secure the release of half of the hostages, alive and dead, for a temporary ceasefire of 60 days. If after that 60-day period Hamas has not disarmed and the Gaza strip is not… pic.twitter.com/s6paJV9rUZ

— Shiri_Sabra (@sabra_the) July 10, 2025

“We are determined to bring them all back,” the prime minister declared, referring to the remaining hostages — both living and deceased — held by Hamas. According to the information provided in the Israel National News report, Netanyahu confirmed that Israel is currently pursuing a framework for the release of approximately half the hostages in exchange for a temporary 60-day ceasefire.

“During that 60-day pause, we will enter into negotiations for a permanent end to the war,” Netanyahu said, signaling that such an arrangement would only be pursued if Israel’s stringent conditions were met. “If this isn’t obtained in 60 days of negotiations, we will obtain it through other means; with force, the force of our heroic military.”

🚨 Prime Minister Netanyahu from Washington:
We’re working to secure the release of half the hostages, both living and fallen, in exchange for a 60-day ceasefire. If Hamas agrees to our basic terms, disarmament, no military or governing power in Gaza, we’ll pursue a permanent end… pic.twitter.com/SPfNeIZ9xK

— The Zion Report ✡︎ (@checkline7) July 11, 2025

Israel National News reported that Netanyahu’s statement was delivered with a tone of steely determination, aimed not only at domestic critics but also at the international community, which has increasingly pressured Israel to curtail its military operations in Gaza. With more than nine months of grinding conflict behind them, Netanyahu emphasized the unique challenges Israel has faced.

“Few militaries have had to contend with such conditions,” he noted, referring to the complex urban warfare and subterranean combat that has defined the campaign against Hamas. “Thanks to the soldiers’ heroism, Israel managed to damage a substantial part of Hamas’s power,” he said. “There are still thousands of armed soldiers there, and we want to work with a combination of diplomacy and military force.”

According to the information contained in the Israel National News report, Netanyahu’s emphasis on a hybrid approach — combining battlefield pressure with conditional negotiations — reflects Israel’s broader strategy in a war that has exacted a steep toll in both military and civilian terms. The prime minister’s message was also aimed squarely at critics of prior ceasefires, some of whom have argued that temporary halts in fighting only serve to provide Hamas with time to regroup.

Netanyahu was unequivocal in addressing that criticism. “If Hamas’s disarmament and dismantlement are achieved through negotiations, great,” he stated. “But either way, they will be achieved.”

In a significant and perhaps underappreciated segment of his statement, Netanyahu turned his attention to the broader regional threat posed by the Islamic Republic of Iran. As reported by Israel National News, the prime minister issued a direct warning concerning the Iranian nuclear program, asserting that a 60-day window is also in place for negotiations between the United States and Iran to yield results.

“If [an agreement] is achieved within 60 days of negotiations between the US and Iran, great. But if it’s not achieved, it will be achieved through other means,” Netanyahu warned, invoking a rhetoric of decisive unilateral action that echoes the Israeli doctrine of preemption in the face of existential threats.

His message echoed recent military operations, such as Israel’s strikes on Iranian-linked infrastructure in Syria and Iraq, as well as last month’s coordinated Israeli-American strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in Fordow and Isfahan. These actions, as previously covered by Israel National News, reflect a growing readiness by Israel to engage directly with the Iranian regime’s nuclear ambitions.

Netanyahu’s emphasis on the release of hostages is not only a moral imperative but a strategic necessity, as highlighted in the Israel National News report. The Israeli public remains deeply invested in the fate of the captives, many of whom were taken during the October 7 Hamas-led assault on Israeli communities near the Gaza border.

Netanyahu’s message from Washington comes as the Israeli government faces mounting internal pressure to bring them home, a demand echoed by family members and political opponents alike. By linking their potential release to a broader ceasefire and the demilitarization of Gaza, Netanyahu is clearly signaling that the return of the hostages must not come at the expense of long-term national security.

“Negotiations must not become an end unto themselves,” he appeared to caution. “We are open to diplomacy, but our expectations are clear. If the conditions are not met, we will proceed by other means.”

The timing and location of Netanyahu’s statement are not without significance. His trip to Washington — which included meetings with President Donald Trump and members of the U.S. Congress — emphasizes Israel’s effort to reaffirm its strategic alliance with the United States at a time of mounting geopolitical complexity.

The report at Israel National News indicated that Netanyahu’s video address was crafted not only for Israeli audiences but also for American policymakers and international observers skeptical of Israel’s war aims. By issuing the message from U.S. soil, Netanyahu sought to project unity of purpose and resolve.

Though the White House has repeatedly urged a quicker path to a ceasefire, Netanyahu’s message served as a reminder that, for Israel, peace without disarmament is tantamount to surrender. The goal is not merely to pause hostilities but to neutralize the Hamas threat once and for all — whether through negotiations or, as Netanyahu made unmistakably clear, the “force of our heroic military.”

Netanyahu’s declaration from Washington reaffirmed Israel’s red lines with unmistakable clarity. “We did not make the journey of thousands of years of Jewish history to be uprooted again by terrorists,” he said, echoing sentiments previously expressed in Israeli wartime addresses.

As reported by Israel National News, the prime minister’s central message was one of conditional flexibility: a willingness to negotiate, but never at the expense of security or sovereignty. The 60-day window, he said, is both a test and an opportunity — for Hamas, for Iran, and for the international community.

Israel, Netanyahu made clear, will wait for no one.

And should negotiations falter?

“We will obtain our objectives by other means.”