In a televised address posted by Netanyahu's office on his official Twitter account, Netanyahu said he was "ready to strike a deal that would lead to a temporary ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of more detainees" in the territory.
Netanyahu claimed that Israel had allowed sufficient quantities of food and other aid into Gaza in recent days.
He claimed that Israel "allowed the entry of approximately 100 trucks carrying aid into Gaza yesterday (Wednesday)," while the Gaza government announced that the total number of trucks that entered did not exceed 87.
On Thursday evening, Hamas confirmed in a statement that the aid delivered to Gaza after 81 days of Israeli closure represents less than a tenth of the daily needs amid worsening hunger and the collapse of the health sector.
Netanyahu's talk of his readiness for a deal comes after his decision on Thursday to return the entire negotiating team from the Qatari capital, Doha, to Israel following what he claimed was a "stallation in talks" regarding a prisoner exchange deal, according to the newspaper Israel Hayom.
Egypt and Qatar, in cooperation with the United States, are leading attempts to conclude a prisoner exchange agreement and a ceasefire in Gaza.
On Tuesday evening, Netanyahu ordered the return of senior members of the Israeli delegation, leaving only the technical staff.
On the same day, Netanyahu's office said in a statement: "Israel agrees to the American proposal to return the kidnapped soldiers, based on (US presidential envoy Steve) Witkoff's plan."
He claimed that "this proposal was recently conveyed to Hamas through mediators, but it has so far rejected it."
The general outlines of this proposal, according to Hebrew media, include the release of ten living Israeli detainees in a single day, and the return of the bodies of half of the slain detainees, in exchange for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza.
Hamas has repeatedly affirmed its willingness to release the Israeli captives "in one batch" in exchange for an end to the war of extermination, the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation forces from Gaza, and the release of Palestinian prisoners.
But Netanyahu is evading the issue by insisting on continuing the occupation of Gaza and disarming the Palestinian factions, which the latter reject as long as the Israeli occupation remains.
The Israeli opposition and prisoners' families accuse Netanyahu of continuing the war in deference to the more extreme right-wing faction within his government, to further his personal political interests, particularly his continued hold on power.
Since October 7, 2023, Israel, with full American support, has been committing genocide in Gaza, leaving more than 175,000 Palestinians dead or wounded, most of them children and women, more than 11,000 missing, and hundreds of thousands displaced.
