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President Trump issued a pointed demand to Hamas on Wednesday, making clear he has had it with their stall tactics.
In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “Tell Hamas to IMMEDIATELY give back all 20 Hostages (Not 2 or 5 or 7!), and things will change rapidly. IT WILL END!”
His statement comes amid ongoing difficulties in securing a resolution to the conflict that erupted after Hamas launched a devastating attack in Israel on October 7, 2023.
Although Trump managed a halt in hostilities before his inauguration, a lasting peace deal has not come to fruition. Hamas is estimated to have initially captured as many as 200 hostages during its October 7 attack, with most now either freed or deceased.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff recently provided an update on the war during a Fox News interview. When asked directly if Israel or Hamas was responsible for holding up the end of the war, he bluntly stated, “Hamas. Hamas, 100 percent. There has been a deal on the table for the last six or seven weeks that would have released ten of the hostages out of the 20 who we think are alive, and it was Hamas who slow-played that process, and it is Hamas now who is saying, ‘we accept that deal.'”
Witkoff attributed Hamas’s recent change of tune to “very intense pressure” from Israel. In August, senior Hamas official Basem Naim agreed to release 10 living and 18 deceased hostages in spurts amid a 60-day ceasefire, according to the New York Post.
In the agreement, Israel agreed to free 150 Palestinian prisoners serving life terms, in addition to 50 others who were set to serve 15 years. Ten deceased Palestinian militants would also be exchanged for the release of each dead Hamas hostage.
The deal included language that urged both sides to negotiate a permanent ceasefire during the 60-day battle halt, according to the outlet.
In late August, President Trump told reporters from the Oval Office, “The situation has to end. It’s extortion, and it has to end … I think they’re safer in many ways if you went in and you really went in fast and did it,” referring to a potential strategy for Israel.