The Media Line: Netanyahu Apologizes for Hostage Deaths, Defends Gaza-Egypt Border Hold

By Steven Ganot and Giorgia Valente / The Media Line

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a rare public apology on Monday to the families of six hostages who were recently executed by Hamas, while firmly stating that Israel would not compromise on maintaining its military presence in the Philadelphi Corridor, a critical buffer zone along the Gaza-Egypt border.

Netanyahu’s apology came during a press conference in which he addressed growing criticism of his government’s handling of the hostage crisis. He expressed deep sorrow over the failure to bring the hostages home alive, saying, “My heart and the heart of the nation is shattered into pieces. … I ask for your forgiveness that we did not succeed in bringing them home alive. We were close, but we did not succeed.”