TEL AVIV — The Palestinian Authority must be part of the future administration of Gaza, said Yair Golan, chair of the Israeli opposition party, the Democrats, lamenting that the current government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not want to end the war in Gaza for political reasons. 

Interviewed by Al-Monitor in Tel Aviv, Golan claimed that Israel "could have reached a deal with Hamas for the release of the hostages several months ago, on at least three occasions, with much better terms but didn't because of Netanyahu's insistence on continuing the war.

"I mean a comprehensive deal [for the release of all the hostages together], not an agreement split into phases." He was referring to the three-phase ceasefire that came into effect on Jan. 19 between Israel and Hamas, which will see the release of 33 out of 98 hostages — including some dead Israelis — in phase one.  

Netanyahu's accepting a phased deal, argued Golan, shows that he is still trying to avoid the second phase of the deal — namely, the full retreat of Israeli troops from the Gaza, despite the terrible price paid in human lives.