The Israel expressed its “reservations”. on a proposal for a hostage release agreement, and considers that this round of negotiations in Cairo on the cease-fire in Gaza it has finished, a senior Israeli official told Reuters news agency on Thursday.

The Israeli delegation is returning from the Egyptian capital and Israel will proceed with its military operation in Rafah and other parts of the Gaza Strip as planned, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

“We will fight tooth and nail”

Tough answer to Joe Biden allegedly given by Benjamin Netanyahu according to Israeli media, after the American decision to “block” ammunition to Israel if the military operation in Rafah takes place.

On Thursday, Netanyahu even released footage of his speech at Yad Vashem earlier this week, in which he declared that Israel will stand alone against Hamas if necessary.

“Today, we again face enemies who seek to destroy us,” Netanyahu said in the video posted on X, from a Holocaust Remembrance Day event in Jerusalem. “I say to the leaders of the world – no pressure, no decision from any international forum, will prevent Israel from defending itself.”

“If Israel is forced to stand alone, Israel will stand alone,” Netanyahu clarified, adding, “We will defeat our genocidal enemies. “Never Again” is now.”

“Broadly speaking, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s position is what he told Biden in their phone call on Monday: “We will fight tooth and nail if necessary.” an Israeli official told the Times of Israel. Channel 12 reports, however, that this quote was from a statement by Netanyahu at a cabinet meeting, not from his communication with Biden.

Israel has already started working through some diplomatic channels to pressure Biden to change policy, the official added.

According to NBC Netanyahu has no intention of agreeing to a deal with Hamas on the hostages unless the deal allows him to proceed with a military operation in Rafah. The US network cited four US officials as well as a former US official.

Netanyahu wants to “seal” the business from a potential dealmeaning there will be no limits on Israel’s ability to operate in southern Gaza City, the report said.

What Joe Biden had said

Joe Biden warned on Wednesday that he “will not hand over” some weapons and ammunition to Israel, of which the US is a key ally and supplier of military equipment, especially “artillery shells”, if its forces launch a large-scale ground attack on Rafa — an unprecedented step by Washington.

“If they enter Rafah, I will not hand over the weapons that are used (…) against cities,” the Democratic president said in an interview with the CNN television network.

Invading Rafa would be ‘just wrong’ and “we will not hand over the artillery shells used” by the Israeli military, Mr. Biden insisted.

It is the first time that the American president, 81 years old, sets—publicly—conditions for the continuation of the American military support to Israel. However, he clarified that he does not think Israel has “crossed the red line yet”, when asked about the occupation of the Gaza Strip border crossing with Egypt and the “limited” range operations it is conducting in areas of the Rafah.