After Trump's "Last Warning" Threat, Hamas' "Lies And Deception" Response

The armed wing of Hamas said on Thursday it remained committed to its fragile ceasefire with Israel, after Donald Trump told the people of Gaza they would be "DEAD" if hostages held there are not freed.
The first phase of the six-week-old truce expired at the weekend and talks on the deal's future have hit an impasse.

Hamas said Trump's threats would encourage Israel to ignore the deal, which largely halted more than 15 months of war in Gaza between Israel and Palestinian militants.

Trump had earlier floated a widely condemned plan to relocate Palestinians from Gaza, prompting Arab leaders who met in Cairo this week to support an alternative.

A United States envoy praised Egypt on Thursday for coming up with the new plan, but did not endorse details of the proposed alternative.

Trump's warning followed his administration's revelation that it held unprecedented direct talks with Hamas -- listed as a "terrorist" group by Washington -- focused on American hostages in Gaza.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office confirmed Israel was consulted and said it had "expressed its opinion" on the talks.

"Despite all the enemy's attempts at evasion, lies and deception... we preferred and still prefer to adhere to the agreement in order to spare the blood of our people," Abu Obaida, spokesman for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said in a video statement.

On Wednesday, Trump issued what he called a "last warning!" to Hamas leaders, telling the movement to immediately release all hostages "or it is OVER for you".

Israel killed Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar as well as the movement's military leader Mohammed Deif during the war in Gaza that began with Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

Trump also warned of repercussions for Gaza as a whole, where virtually the entire population has been displaced by Israel's military campaign in response to Hamas's attack.

"To the People of Gaza: A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD! Make a SMART decision. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW, OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY LATER!"

Hamas's attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people on the Israeli side, most of them civilians, while Israel's military retaliation in Gaza has killed at least 48,446 people, also mostly civilians, figures from the two sides show.

Leaning on a cane outside a makeshift shelter in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, Mohammed Salim dismissed Trump's talk of turning the territory into hell.

"It has already become one," he said. "We have been devastated, our homes reduced to rubble, our sons, fathers and elders lost. There is nothing left to mourn."

- Israelis 'worried' -

Hamas spokesman Hazem Qasim said Trump's words were pushing Israel to disregard the terms of the ceasefire in place since January 19, after more than 15 months of war.

"These threats complicate matters regarding the ceasefire agreement and encourage the occupation to avoid implementing its terms," Qasim said, urging the United States to pressure Israel to enter the ceasefire's second phase, which is envisioned as leading to a lasting truce.

Analysts said the US-Hamas direct talks are a sign of dysfunction in talks to prolong the truce.

James Dorsey, an honorary fellow at the National University of Singapore's Middle East Institute, said the direct talks would give Hamas "a sense of having been legitimised strongly".

The Israelis are in turn "obviously worried" by the outreach, he said.

The first phase -- negotiated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt -- brought a period of relative calm during which Israeli hostages were exchanged for Palestinian prisoners and humanitarian assistance flowed into Gaza.

Israel, which on Sunday halted the aid flow, wants to extend the initial phase until mid-April.

- 'Good-faith' -

The US-Hamas talks were first reported by media outlet Axios, which said Washington's hostage envoy Adam Boehler met with Hamas in Qatar about the US captives but also about a longer-term truce.

Washington had refused direct contact with Hamas since designating it a terrorist organisation in 1997.

Of the 251 captives taken during Hamas's attack, 58 remain in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military has said are dead.

Five Americans are believed to remain among the hostages -- four have been confirmed dead and one, Edan Alexander, is believed to be alive.

The White House said Trump met with eight of the freed captives, who "expressed gratitude" for his efforts to bring them home.

"Hamas' actions have inflicted immense suffering, AND THEIR REIGN OF TERROR MUST BE STOPPED," the White House posted on X.

Trump previously triggered global outrage by suggesting the United States should "take over" rubble-strewn Gaza, turn it into the "Riviera of the Middle East" and relocate Palestinians to Egypt or Jordan.

Arab leaders this week endorsed an alternative plan that would finance Gaza's reconstruction through a trust fund, and would see the return of the Palestinian Authority to the territory.

The PA currently has partial administrative control in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and is dominated by Hamas rivals Fatah.

"We need more discussion about it, but it's a good-faith first step from the Egyptians," Steve Witkoff, Trump's Middle East envoy, told reporters in Washington.

The State Department, however, said Egypt's plan "does not meet the expectations."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)