“The military will return to intense fighting until Hamas is finally defeated,” he said in a video statement after a four-hour cabinet meeting.
“Last night, I ordered the IDF to assemble forces inside and around the Gaza Strip,” he added.
The statement comes a day after US President Donald Trump threatened to cancel the ceasefire if Israeli captives are not released, telling reporters on Monday that “all hell is going to break out” if they are not returned.
The statements come after Hamas announced it would delay the release of the next tranche of captives “until further notice”, accusing Israel of failing to comply with the terms of the truce deal.
Trump had also expressed frustration at the conditions of the recent batch of Israeli captives released by Hamas, noting his scepticism regarding whether the remaining captives are alive.
“I think a lot of the hostages are dead,” he said.
Trump has stated that he doesn’t think Hamas will return the captives and reiterated that if they aren’t returned, then “all bets are off”.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed a confirmed nearly 48,200 people and injured 111,640, according to the enclave’s Health Ministry. The Government Media Office has updated the death toll to at least 61,700 people, saying thousands who were missing under the rubble are now presumed dead.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November last year for Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
