TEL AVIV, Israel — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a "last minute crisis" with Hamas was holding up Israeli approval of a long-awaited agreement to pause the fighting in the Gaza Strip and release dozens of hostages. Israeli airstrikes meanwhile killed dozens of people across the war-ravaged territory.

The problem for Netanyahu is Netanyahu. Consumed by the desire to stay in power, he has been wedged between overwhelming public demand for the hostages to be released, and those who keep him in power—his coalition partners.