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Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Sunday that he does not believe it is possible to reach a long-standing, permanent truce with Hamas, local media reported.
"I don't think we can reach an agreed mechanism with regard to the payment of salaries in Gaza and with anything to do with the strengthening of Hamas," the ministers said at a press conference, the Ha'aretz daily reported.
"They will continue to produce and smuggle weapons, and then how can we stop their strengthening?" Lieberman said, adding that it is not real to expect that the Gaza Strip will be demilitarized, even though it is a substantial issue for Israel. "In my opinion, any cease-fire will be limited," he said.
The minister also said that Israel could not accept a state in which Hamas reigns the Strip, due to that the organization is " just as dangerous" as the Islamic State.
Lieberman also talked about Israel's attempt to assassinate top Hamas military leader Mohammad Deif last month during the war. There have been conflicting accounts as to whether Deif was killed (along with his wife and child) or not. In that aspect, the minister said, "If we haven't heard his voice up until now, it appears there's room for optimism."
On Sunday, the Ha'aretz daily published highlights from a classified document issued by the foreign ministry, suggesting that an international force should be deployed in the Gaza Strip in order to prevent Hamas' weapons smuggle while overseeing border crossings.
Lieberman, a hawkish component of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition, had often expressed the view that Israel should take over the Gaza Strip and re-occupy it, following Hamas' rocket attacks from the enclave. His relationship with Netanyahu had been somewhat strained amid these uncoordinated, public statements.
Operation Protective Edge took place between July 8 and Aug. 26 for seven weeks. Israel and Hamas agreed on an unlimited truce and both sides are expected to carry on negotiating a permanent truce in Cairo later this month.
