Israel’s finance minister says release of hostages ‘not most important thing’

Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Tuesday that hostages held by Hamas are "not the most important thing" for Tel Aviv.

"No, that's not the most important thing," Smotrich told Israeli public broadcaster KAN when asked if the return of hostages was of utmost importance.

"Bringing them back at any cost is an untrue and irresponsible statement. This is not a competition," he added.

The hardline minister argued that Israel's main goal is to destroy Hamas.

Israel estimates that at least 134 Israelis are held by Hamas following its cross-border attack on Oct. 7.

Hamas demands an end to Israel's offensive in Gaza in return for any hostage deal with Israel.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, killing nearly 29,195 people and injuring about 69,170 with mass destruction and shortages of necessities, while less than 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.