Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected Hamas’ conditions for an end to the Gaza war in exchange for the release of hostages held there as he faces increasing public pressure to bring the captives home.

In order to release the remaining hostages, Netanyahu said Hamas was demanding an end to the war, cbd the release of Palestinian prisoners and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. "I work on this around the clock. But to be clear: I reject outright the terms of surrender of the monsters of Hamas," he said in a statement on Sunday, adding that agreeing to the terms goes against Israel’s security.

"If we agree to this, our soldiers fell in vain. If we agree to this, we will not be able to guarantee the security of our citizens," the Prime Minister said.

Out of the 253 hostages Israel says Hamas seized on October 7, Israel believes that 132 are still in Gaza, of whom 104 are thought to be alive.

Netanyahu’s rejection of Hamas’ conditions comes after a Wall Street Journal report said that the US, Egypt and Qatar want Israel to join a new phase of talks with Hamas that would start with the release of hostages and lead to the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

It also comes amid deepening divisions within Israel’s war cabinet about whether to prioritize bringing hostages home over defeating Hamas, and as thousands protested over the weekend in Tel Aviv against Netanyahu’s handling of the war.