Benjamin Netanyahu has called for the elimination of Hamas following pressure from Donald Trump to end the war.

In a speech on Wednesday, the Israeli prime minister said that in post-war Gaza: “There will not be a Hamas. There will not be a Hamastan. We’re not going back to that. It’s over. We will free all our hostages.”

MSN reports: Hamas also staked out its position, saying it was considering Mr Trump’s proposal for a 60-day ceasefire. But, at the same time, it repeated its demand that Israel withdraw from the Gaza Strip and commit to ending the war in return for the release of any hostages.

On Tuesday, Mr Trump announced that Israel had accepted his ceasefire proposal. While the precise terms are unclear, it appears similar to a previous formulation that Hamas has repeatedly rejected since February.

The US president said the 60-day period would be used to work towards ending the war – something Israel says it won’t accept until Hamas is defeated. 

Mr Trump said that a deal might come together as soon as next week, when Mr Netanyahu will be visiting Washington.

Mr Netanyahu has put out mixed messages over recent days.

On Sunday, for the first time, he appeared to decouple the two objectives of returning the hostages and finishing off Hamas, which critics have long argued are contradictory.

In comments during a visit to an intelligence facility, he appeared to suggest that hostage returns should be prioritised.

However, in both leaked remarks at a subsequent security cabinet meeting, and in a speech on Wednesday, the Israeli prime minister returned to bellicose rhetoric calling for the annihilation of Hamas.