Netanyahu plays two-faced, appeasing the United States while pressuring his subordinates

On August 20, according to the AXIOS website, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US Secretary of State Blinken on Monday that he was committed to reaching a hostage and ceasefire agreement in Gaza, but Israeli officials said he refused to give his negotiators enough room to reach an agreement. Netanyahu's negotiating team reported to him on Sunday that a deal could be reached if he was willing to offer more leeway. Two senior Israeli officials said Netanyahu refused to budge and condemned the negotiating team for "caving in". Netanyahu went on to argue that if Israel stood firm, Hamas would eventually cave. The White House previously claimed that significant progress had been made in talks held in Doha last week. Blinken said Netanyahu had accepted the US offer, and Hamas now had the responsibility to agree to the ceasefire offer. The statement puzzled some Israeli officials, who said Netanyahu's hard line had actually made it more difficult to reach a deal. < b > Netanyahu agreed with the U.S. proposal, but he knew Hamas would reject it because it contained several of his latest demands.