WASHINGTON, November 8. /TASS/. Israeli authorities are ready for pauses in hostilities if the Palestinian radical movement Hamas releases a substantial number of refugees, a high-ranking Israeli official told Politico.

The comment came as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in an interview with ABC News that there would be no ceasefire without the release of hostages. As regards potential tactical pauses, the Israeli premier said they would "check the circumstances" but that they had had them before, Politico reported. Earlier, US President Joe Biden discussed the possibility of tactical pauses with Netanyahu in a call.

"Israel is willing to do pauses, but only and if there’s a substantial release of hostages. We’re discussing localized solutions for specific needs with the American administration," the official told Politico.

A senior US official told the US newspaper that "it’s much better that Netanyahu’s indicating an openness to US requests for pauses in fighting than rejecting it out of hand."

Commenting on a potential humanitarian pause in the Gaza Strip at an online news briefing on November 6, National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby said that there still was no agreement "in date and time and length and purpose" yet.