WASHINGTON, DC – US President Donald Trump warned Hamas Monday (Tuesday Manila time) it would be “eradicated” if it breaches the Gaza deal with Israel, but said he would give the Palestinian militant group a chance to honor the truce.
Vice President JD Vance headed to Israel shortly after Trump’s comments, joining two top US envoys after weekend violence threatened to wreck the fragile ceasefire.
“We made a deal with Hamas that they’re going to be very good, they’re going to behave, they’re going to be nice,” Trump told reporters at the White House as he hosted Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
“And if they’re not, we’re going to go and we’re going to eradicate them, if we have to. They’ll be eradicated, and they know that.”
Trump helped broker the Gaza deal nearly two weeks ago but it has repeatedly come under threat as Israel accuses Hamas of stalling on handing over dead hostages, and of launching attacks.
The US president has also warned the militant group to stop public executions of rivals and alleged collaborators as it seeks to reestablish its grip on the devastated territory.
Trump, however, insisted that American forces would not be involved against Hamas, saying dozens of countries that have agreed to join an international stabilization forces for Gaza would “love to go in.”
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has redoubled its efforts to bolster a fragile ceasefire in Gaza after a flare-up of violence, with Vice President JD Vance due in Israel on Tuesday hot on the heels of two high-level envoys.
Despite incidents over the weekend, both warring parties have said they are committed to the US-backed truce, and Donald Trump himself said Monday that he would give Hamas a chance to “behave” or else be “eradicated.”
The ultimatum came as militants returned the body of another dead hostage under the ceasefire deal, with the Israeli military confirming the remains were back in Israel where they would be positively identified.
Prior to the latest handover, Hamas had given back 12 hostages’ bodies out of the 28 it had pledged to return, but it says it needs time and technical assistance to recover them all.
The truce, which Trump helped to broker, came under threat over the weekend when two Israeli soldiers were killed in Gaza’s south.
In response, Israel carried out dozens of strikes targeting Hamas across the territory on Sunday—using 153 tons of bombs, according to Netanyahu—and accused the militant group of “a blatant violation” of the ceasefire, an accusation it denied. AFP
“We made a deal with Hamas that they’re going to be very good, they’re going to behave, they’re going to be nice,” Trump told reporters at the White House, adding that “if they’re not, we’re going to go and we’re going to eradicate them.”
Trump clarified that American forces would not be involved, but “Israel would go in in two minutes, if I asked them”.
“But right now, we haven’t said that. We’re going to give it a little chance,” he added.
Trump had previously said that as far as he was concerned, the ceasefire was still in effect.
His special envoy Steve Witkoff and adviser son-in-law Jared Kushner met with Netanyahu on Monday to discuss recent developments, Shosh Bedrosian, spokeswoman for the prime minister’s office, told journalists.
And Netanyahu later told parliament that Vice President Vance would arrive in Israel on Tuesday for discussions on “two things… the security challenges we face and the diplomatic opportunities before us.”
The ceasefire, which began on October 10, halted more than two years of war between Israel and Hamas.
The deal established the outline for hostage and prisoner exchanges, and proposed an ambitious roadmap for Gaza’s future. But its implementation has quickly faced challenges.
Following the flare-up over the weekend, the United Nations said it was “concerned by all acts of violence in Gaza”.
“We urge all parties to honor all of their commitments to ensure the protection of civilians and avoid any actions that could lead to a renewal of hostilities and undermine humanitarian operations,” said the secretary-general’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric.
Gaza’s civil defense agency said Israeli strikes killed at least 45 people across the territory on Sunday.
The agency, which operates under Hamas authority, said four people were also killed by Israeli gunfire on Monday in Gaza City, with the army saying it fired at militants who crossed a ceasefire line.
Under Trump’s 20-point plan, Israeli forces have withdrawn beyond the so-called “Yellow Line” — which leaves them in control of around half of Gaza, including the territory’s borders, but not its main cities.
Israeli troops have fired on Gazans they say were approaching their new positions several times since the ceasefire was declared.
Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify details provided by the civil defense agency or the Israeli military.
The army said that after carrying out Sunday’s air strikes in response to the attack on its soldiers, it had “renewed enforcement of the ceasefire” but would “respond firmly to any violation”.
Hamas denied knowledge of any attack, with one official accusing Israel of fabricating “pretexts” to resume the war.
A Hamas delegation was in Cairo on Monday for talks with Qatari and Egyptian mediators on the continuation of the truce and an upcoming intra-Palestinian dialogue hosted by Egypt, according to a source close to the negotiations.
Hamas’s 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,221 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures. AFP
