TEL AVIV, September 4. /TASS/. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the leader of the far-right Otzma Yehudit or Jewish Power party, said that he was working to cancel the talks the country is holding with the radical Palestinian movement Hamas under the mediation of Egypt and Qatar.

"I am trying to stop the talks with Hamas. The country, whose six hostages were brutally murdered, does not hold talks with murderers; on the contrary, it stops talks, stops supplying them with fuel and electricity, and crushes them until they give up," the politician wrote on his X page.

According to Ben-Gvir, the continuation of talks "only incites terror" carried out by Palestinian radicals, including in the West Bank. The minister's statement came in light of the news that six Israeli hostages were killed in the Gaza Strip on September 1. According to the Israeli army, their bodies were found in a tunnel in the town of Rafah in the south of the enclave. The Israeli side said that they were killed shortly before the arrival of the army, which was engaged in fighting with Palestinian radicals in the area and had no information about hostages being held there.

In the early morning hours of September 2, the Axios news outlet reported, citing a US administration official, that US President Joe Biden is expected to unveil the final plan for a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip soon. According to the news outlet, Israel and Hamas will have one week to respond to the US president's new offer.