Netanyahu is expected to wholly reject the terms, but with US Sec of State Blinken in town, he is being diplomatic, for a while

After a week’s delay, Hamas’ political leadership presented the terror group’s response to Egyptian and Qatari ceasefire proposals with a laundry list of outrageous demands as if they are in any position to negotiate. With 18 of 24 batallions destroyed, half their fighters killed or wounded, you would think they might be in the mood for a deal. But no.

Evidently, Hamas believes that Israeli is willing to stop prematurely its war campaign, nearing a successful conclusion and give in to various and sundry demands, including the release of 1500 security prisoners, many serving life terms for murder and terror attack planning, including those that carried out the October 7 Massacre. Arab press reports indicated that Qatar has promised Hamas the release of three to five thousand.

The Hamas response would stretch out over 3 phases, each of 45 days, putting an effective end to Israel’s hopes of restarting a campaign or achieving its primary war aim of toppling the terror organization, tottering already on its last legs.

In the first phase, as a condition for releasing the remaining Israeli women, the wounded, and the elderly, Hamas demands that Israel empty its prisons of all female Palestinians, young security offenders and all men over 50.

Hamas, acting like they’re in the driver’s seat, is demanding that Jewish visits to their sacred Temple Mount, allowed for the past 21 years, must cease, and their Jews should not be allowed to set foot there. They are demanded 20,000 temporary structures hundreds of thousands of tents. 500 truckloads of tunnel construction supplies and fuel, plus Norwegian salmon and truffles from France.

They also want a Super Bowl skybox for the whole Hamas leadership. And VIP seats for the gang at an upcoming Taylor Swift concert.

Any Israeli leader who would take seriously the litany of demands that even a doddering US President, who appeared unable to remember the name Hamas, dismissed as “a little over the top” would find themselves tarred and feathered and driven out of town.

But Anthony Blinken, the US Secretary of State is in town, so the Israelis are, for the moment, “studying” the response. But an early evening press conference by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, appearing separately from Blinken, is expected to dispel any ambiguity about where Israel’s leadership stands, despite the international pressures and the leftist pressures on his government to cave in to the terrorist demands.

The US has made no secret of its intention to use any new truce to end the fighting, as Biden, declining ever further in his faculties and the opinion polls, seeks to pander to pro-Palestinian factions inside his party.