Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that military pressure will lead to the release of detainees held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

This came while he received, in his office in West Jerusalem, a delegation of members of the US Congress, which included Republican and Democratic legislators, according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office.

Netanyahu said: “It is very important to maintain bipartisan support at all times, especially in these difficult times.”

He claimed that "Iran has officially launched a campaign with Hezbollah, which also applies to Hamas, the Houthis, and others, requiring their official policy to shift from an ideological position to destroy Israel, to a long-term practical plan to destroy it."

Netanyahu continued: “We must win, but this does not eliminate other needs (representing) how to deal with Hezbollah and Iran, and prevent them from obtaining nuclear weapons, and how to prevent militias from launching missiles at Israel from Yemen or Baghdad.”

He explained, "Our goal is to destroy the military and authoritarian capabilities of Hamas in Gaza."

Netanyahu pointed out, "The second goal is to release the kidnapped people, and military action is what creates pressure to release the kidnapped ones."

For days, the Qatari capital, Doha, has been witnessing indirect negotiations between Israel and the Hamas movement, mediated by Qatari and Egyptian, but they have not yet led to reaching a prisoner exchange deal.

The Israeli Prime Minister continued: “The third goal is to create a situation in which Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel. These are the goals.”

The meeting was attended by Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, National Security Council Chairman Tzachi Hanegbi, and Netanyahu's political advisor Ofir Falk, according to the statement.

While the congressional delegation included Representatives: Brad Schneider, Jim Costa, Debbie Lesko, Juan Vargas, Valerie Fauci, Cathy Manning, Marilyn Strickland, Norma Torres, and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, in addition to other senior officials from the Israel lobby in the United States (US Public Affairs Committee Israeli) known by the abbreviation "AIPAC".

For its part, the Hebrew Channel 7 said: The American delegation arrived in Israel at the initiative of AIPAC.

While the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper quoted Netanyahu during his meeting with the American delegation as saying, “Israel will win the war with the support of US President (Joe) Biden, which support we greatly appreciate,” he claimed.

Relations between Tel Aviv and Washington are witnessing increasing tension, which reached its peak on Monday, with the latter abstaining from using its veto within a resolution adopted by the UN Security Council calling on Israel to cease fire in the Gaza Strip during the month of Ramadan, as 14 countries voted in favor of the resolution and the United States abstained from voting. 

In response, Netanyahu announced the cancellation of sending his country's delegation to Washington in protest against its failure to veto the draft resolution.

A delegation including Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi was scheduled to leave for Washington in the coming days, to discuss a possible Israeli ground operation in Rafah, to which Washington has repeatedly announced its objection.