Netanyahu said he intends to destroy Hamas and fulfill all the goals in Gaza

Israel will fulfill its goals in the Gaza Strip, including the destruction of Hamas, the return of all Jewish hostages, and the elimination of the threat to the country from the Strip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this during a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Feb. 5.

"I support the release of all hostages and the achievement of all our military objectives, including destroying Hamas' military and state capabilities and ensuring that Gaza never again poses a threat to Israel," the Qatari TV channel Al Jazeera quoted the prime minister as saying.

The possible resettlement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip was also among the topics discussed.

"I think Gaza is now a demolition site. If you look at Gaza, there is hardly a single building surviving there, and the ones that are there are collapsing. You can't live in Gaza right now. I think we need another place, a place that will make people happy," Trump said.

According to him, it could be "Jordan, Egypt or other countries" where displaced people could find a permanent home to replace the ruins in Gaza.

The US president also refused to commit to supporting a Palestinian state, which he made during his first term.

"A lot of plans change over time. A lot of deaths have happened since I left and now I'm back," he said when asked about his 2020 position, when such commitments were actually envisioned by him.

At the same time, he also spoke out against the establishment of Jewish settlements in Sekator Gaza.

"I don't see the prerequisites for that. Their [Israeli] soldiers don't want to be there. Their soldiers don't want to be there," Trump said.

Netanyahu himself has a similar take on the idea - at the start of the conflict in the region, he called plans for Jewish settlements in the Strip "unrealistic."

Palestinian authorities reported the deaths of more than 61,000 people in the Gaza Strip

Earlier in the White house told about Trump's plans for cooperation with Israel. Advisor to the US President Michael Waltz noted that the States will raise the topic of the release of hostages and threats from the Yemeni Houthis and Iran.

On Feb. 1, Netanyahu intends to announce his desire to fly out to meet with Trump. The Israeli Prime Minister's Office indicated that Netanyahu had agreed with Trump's special envoy for the Middle East to begin negotiations on the second phase of the Gaza deal in the U.S. on Feb. 3.

On Jan. 19, the first phase of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into effect. During this phase of the deal, which will last 42 days, 33 Israeli hostages and about 1,900 Palestinians are to be released. On the same day, the movement released three hostages in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners, and on January 26, four military girls were handed over to the Red Cross. They were subsequently flown back to their homeland.

The situation in the Middle East escalated on the morning of October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a massive rocket attack from the Gaza Strip into Israel. On the same day, Israel began retaliatory strikes.