Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Monday denied reports that Israel was considering allowing hundreds of Hamas terrorists trapped in tunnels beneath Rafah to cross safely into Hamas-controlled areas of Gaza.
Channel 12 earlier reported that Israel was weighing a proposal to let the operatives pass into Hamas-held territory if they agreed to disarm or if Hamas returned additional bodies of Israeli hostages. According to the network, the idea was being discussed as part of a broader framework supported by Washington, Cairo, and Doha to advance the next phase of the ceasefire based on former U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan.
The Prime Minister’s Office dismissed the report outright. “The prime minister persists in his firm stance on the disarmament of Hamas and the demilitarization of the Strip while eliminating terrorist threats to our forces,” an official statement said. “There will be no safe passage for Hamas terrorists.”
Israeli intelligence estimates that around 200 Hamas operatives remain underground in areas currently controlled by the IDF, especially in Rafah. These gunmen are unable to withdraw without surfacing and exposing themselves to Israeli forces.
IDF officials confirmed that several terrorists were killed earlier Monday after crossing the “Yellow Line,” which marks the boundary between IDF-controlled areas and Hamas territory. The military said the operatives “posed an immediate threat” to Israeli troops and were eliminated by an airstrike.
The October 9 ceasefire agreement signed in Egypt included provisions for an IDF pullback, a hostage-prisoner exchange, and humanitarian aid—but no clause regarding safe passage for Hamas personnel. Nonetheless, U.S. officials have continued to press Israel to permit such movement as a “confidence-building step.”
According to an American source quoted by The Times of Israel, Egyptian and Qatari mediators gave Hamas a 24-hour deadline last week to evacuate its fighters from the tunnels in Rafah. That deadline expired Thursday, after which Israel received approval from the United States, Egypt, and Qatar to engage Hamas operatives remaining on the Israeli side of the Yellow Line.
Despite Hamas’s claims that “communication has been cut off” with its fighters in those areas, Israeli security officials say the operatives have been actively involved in recent attacks on IDF troops in Rafah. Two deadly incidents during the ceasefire were attributed to terrorists operating from tunnels under Israeli-controlled zones.
The dispute over the fate of these fighters touches a broader question about Israel’s obligations in war. The Bible instructs Israel to confront evil directly: “You shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; do not forget” (Devarim / Deuteronomy 25:19). The Sages taught that those who rise against Israel precisely because it is Israel must not be granted immunity.
Hamas still holds the bodies of eight hostages: six Israelis, Tanzanian agricultural worker Joshua Mollel, and Thai worker Sudthisak Rinthalak. Israel has made clear that no movement of Hamas operatives will be permitted until all captives—living and deceased—are returned.
“The Prime Minister continues his firm stance of disarming Hamas and demilitarizing the Strip while thwarting terrorist threats against our forces,” the Prime Minister’s Office reiterated.
