Former Biden official says Netanyahu delayed hostage deal — Jerusalem Post

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu introduced additional conditions for an agreement on the release of hostages in July 2024, making a deal impossible for another six months, former Joe Biden administration official Phil Gordon said.

As The Jerusalem Post reports, Gordon rejected claims by Netanyahu’s supporters that a new book and an interview with former US official Brett McGurk justify the Israeli prime minister’s actions during the war in Gaza. Gordon said most of his former colleagues believe Biden should have put stronger pressure on Israel to conduct the war differently and end it sooner.

Conversation between Biden and Netanyahu

According to Gordon’s account, Biden urged Netanyahu during a phone call on July 4, 2024, to reach an agreement, as Hamas had allegedly accepted its basic framework. He claims that the group abandoned its demand for Israel’s commitment to a permanent ceasefire before the release of any hostages.

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Instead, Gordon said, Netanyahu put forward new demands contrary to the advice of his own security service chiefs. These included keeping Israeli troops along the entire Gaza-Egypt border, as well as a mechanism for screening Gaza residents returning to the north of the enclave. The latter point, in his assessment, would have required the presence of Israeli troops in central Gaza.

Statements on the consequences of the delay

Gordon claims that over the following six months, nearly 9,000 additional Palestinians were killed, as were other Israeli hostages, including six people whom Hamas executed in August. He emphasized that both additional Israeli demands ultimately were not included in the agreement reached in January 2025.

The former official also criticized Netanyahu’s broader policy during the war, accusing him of prioritizing “total victory” and preserving the coalition over a hostage agreement or ending the war. In Gordon’s view, Washington should have more actively influenced Israel’s actions rather than supporting them.