US President Donald Trump said on Monday (Oct 20) that he would give Hamas a chance to honor the Gaza ceasefire agreement with Israel, but gave a stern warning that the group would be “destroyed” if it fails to abide by it.
Speaking to reporters while hosting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the White House, Trump said: “We have made an agreement with Hamas that they will be very good, they will behave, they will be good. And if they’re not, we’re going to go and we’re going to eliminate them if we have to. They will be eliminated, and they know that.”
US military not involved
Trump emphasized that US forces will not take direct part against Hamas. He said the dozens of other countries that have agreed to join the international stabilization force for Gaza “would love to get involved.”
Trump said, “Also, if I told them to go in, Israel would go in in two minutes. But right now, we haven’t said that. We’re going to give it a little chance, and hopefully there will be a little less violence. But right now, you know, they’re violent people.”
US mediation efforts
Trump’s comments came as his two top envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, recently met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after weekend violence that threatened to derail the fragile ceasefire the US president helped broker nearly two weeks ago. At the same time, US Vice President JD Vance will visit on Tuesday.
Israel resumes ceasefire enforcement after violence
Israel announced on Sunday that it had “begun to renew enforcement of the ceasefire” with Hamas after heavy weekend fighting in Gaza, warning that it would “respond firmly to any violations.” The renewed violence followed an ambush in southern Gaza that killed two Israeli soldiers.
Israeli attacks targeted Hamas weapons-storage facilities and destroyed several kilometers of underground tunnels. Some humanitarian aid has resumed, although the vital Rafah border crossing is still closed.
Next steps in the US-brokered plan
Under Trump’s internationally backed plan, Hamas is expected to disarm and transfer remaining rule to the foreign-supervised Palestinian Administration. While the first phase included releasing the hostages and beginning the IDF withdrawal, Hamas has returned only the remains of 12 dead captives, with Israel accusing the group of delays.
humanitarian and military situation
Israeli troops have redeployed to the “Yellow Line”, bringing half of Gaza under Israeli control, allowing some Palestinian civilians to return to safer areas such as Gaza City and Khan Yunis.
Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that 44 people were killed in Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip over the weekend. Palestinians launched anti-arms attacks on Israeli soldiers in Rafah, killing two soldiers as well as wounding two others.
