President Trump urged on Monday that Israel end its ceasefire agreement with Hamas and threatened to “let all hell break out” if the group did not release the hostages held in Gaza by Saturday at noon.
On Monday morning, Hamas accused Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement and threatened to delay until further notice the next hostage release that was supposed to happen on Saturday.
Trump voiced frustration with Hamas’ announcement to stop releasing hostages and the condition of the last group in a wide-ranging Oval Office session with reporters.
“As far as I’m concerned, if all of the hostages aren’t returned by Saturday at 12 o’clock—I think it’s an appropriate time—I would say, cancel it and all bets are off and let hell break out,” the president said to reporters in the Oval Office following the signing of executive actions.
Trump also threatened to withhold aid from Jordan and Egypt if they fail to accept the relocation of Palestinian refugees from Gaza. On Tuesday, he is scheduled to meet with King Abdullah of Jordan.
In contrast to his own officials’ claims that the Gazans would only be temporarily relocated, he stated that Palestinians would not have the right to go back to the Gaza Strip under his plan to redevelop the enclave.
When asked whether Palestinians would have the right to return to Gaza, Trump responded, “No, they wouldn’t because they’re going to have much better housing.”
After meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington on February 4, Trump shockingly announced that he wanted to relocate the 2.2 million Palestinians in Gaza and turn it into a “Riviera of the Middle East.”
