JERUSALEM, Israel – Hamas continues to defy President Trump and other leaders by keeping control of its weapons, executing fellow Gazans, and refusing to give up the bodies of most of the deceased hostages. Meanwhile, in Lebanon, some Christian leaders are signaling that it’s time for an end to hostilities with Israel.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump again warned Hamas, saying, “If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them.”
When asked later if his post meant that U.S. troops would go into Gaza, Trump responded, “No, I didn’t say who would go in, but somebody will go in. It’s not going to be us. We won’t have to. There are people very close, very nearby, that will go, and they’ll do the trick very easily. But under our auspices.”
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The comments came after reports of Hamas executing Gazans from other clans and the terror group’s refusal to lay down its weapons.
Israel accuses Hamas of breaking the Trump-mediated agreement, having not yet returned all of the deceased hostages. Only nine have been returned so far, with 19 more still held in the Gaza Strip.
Shosh Bedrosian, spokesperson at the National Public Diplomacy Directorate, declared, “A callous, barbaric terror group is continuing to hold onto these bodies, as their families innocently wait to give their loved ones a dignified Jewish burial. Now this is what Israel is up against, and the Prime Minister is determined, committed, and working tirelessly to return all, ALL, of our fallen hostages.”
Still, Israel is allowing the flow of aid into Gaza despite the delay in the return of the hostages.
Israel received two more bodies early Thursday, the last female hostage, Inbar Hayman, and Bedouin Israeli Defense Forces Master Sergeant Muhammad al-Atresh.
In Yemen, Houthi rebels said their Chief of Staff, Maj. Gen. Muhammad Abdul Karim al-Ghamari died of wounds sustained in an Israeli airstrike, most likely in August. Al-Gamari had earlier been sanctioned by the United Nations for his role in the country’s decade-long war.
In Lebanon, Israel claims it targeted Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure on Thursday, which the Iranian proxy was using in an attempt to rehabilitate itself.
Also on Thursday, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called for direct negotiations with Israel. He reportedly published on his official page the speech of Lebanese Parliament Member Alain Aoun, the nephew of Former President Michel Aoun.
It says, in part, “The time has come to end the conflict with Israel and move towards stability and prosperity.”
In Israel, two of the hostages released earlier this week went home from the hospital. Captivity survivors Eitan Horn and Nimrod Cohen received huge hero’s welcomes as they returned to their hometowns of Kfar Saba and Rehovot.
