Israel is amassing troops in and around the Gaza Strip ahead of the upcoming Hamas hostage release, which the Palestinian militant group threatened to delay after accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that the Gaza ceasefire will end if Hamas does not release the remaining hostages this upcoming weekend.
“In light of Hamas’ announcement of its decision to violate the agreement and not release our hostages, I instructed the IDF last night to amass forces inside and around the Gaza Strip,” Netanyahu said in a Tuesday statement. “This operation is currently underway and will be completed as soon as possible.”
Hamas announced on Monday that they would delay the release of hostages slated for the upcoming weekend, accusing Israel of violating the terms of the ceasefire.
President Trump said over the weekend and on Monday that if Hamas does not release all of the remaining hostages by Saturday, he might end the fragile ceasefire agreement that went into effect on Jan. 19 and that “all hell is going to break out.”
“The decision I passed in the Cabinet unanimously is as follows: If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon, the ceasefire will end, and the IDF will resume intense combat until Hamas is decisively defeated,” Netanyahu said on Tuesday following a four-hour meeting with the Security Cabinet.
Hamas has released 21 hostages. In exchange, Israel has freed hundreds of prisoners in return.
Hamas took around 250 people hostage during their Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attack on Israel, which kicked off over 15 months of fighting before the three-phase agreement was struck between the two sides.
As part of the first phase of the plan, which is scheduled to last for six weeks, Hamas, a designated terrorist organization by the U.S., released three Israeli hostages on Saturday. All of them appeared to be in worse condition than those that were freed previously, prompting concerns from Israeli officials.
“We all expressed outrage at the shocking condition of our three hostages who were released this past Saturday,” the Israeli prime minister said on Tuesday.
Netanyahu also “welcomed” Trump’s demand for the release of hostages on Saturday and he said we “all welcomed the president’s revolutionary vision for Gaza’s future.”
Trump has floated the idea of the U.S. taking control of the war-torn enclave and rebuilding it from scratch. The White House has said the Palestinians living there would be temporarily relocated while the rebuild takes place. He also said the Palestinians would not want to return, but then said during a Fox News interview that they would not be allowed to come back to Gaza.
