Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
US President Donald Trump said Hamas failed to meet his demand to release "everyone," delivering only three hostages on Saturday, but Israel accepted this outcome in accordance with the agreed-upon terms of the phased deal.
Trump addressed the situation on Sunday evening, acknowledging that the deadline he set had passed without being met. He explained that he had given Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the freedom to respond as they saw fit and claimed that his threat prompted Hamas to back down from its announcement that the deal was off.
live
US President Donald Trump before boarding Air Forcce 1
(Video: FoxNews)
Speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One, Trump said he told Netanyahu, "You do whatever you want." He said he made the demand for the release of all the hostages because Hamas initially refused to release the three individuals scheduled for Saturday under the deal.
Trump said Hamas ultimately complied after he made that statement: "They eventually agreed, and when I made that clear, they released everyone plus an American citizen," referring to Sagui Dekel-Chen. Trump noted that the hostages released this weekend appeared to be in better condition compared to those freed earlier, whom he said "looked like Holocaust survivors." As for the next phase of the deal, Trump said, "That’ll be up to Israel in consultation with me."
Get the Ynetnews app on your smartphone: Google Play: https://bit.ly/4eJ37pE | Apple App Store: https://bit.ly/3ZL7iNv
Trump's remarks came as Netanyahu announced he would convene the security cabinet on Monday to discuss negotiations for the second phase of the deal, which had been set to begin two weeks ago.
Netanyahu also said an Israeli delegation would travel to Cairo with a limited mandate to discuss only the implementation of the current phase, adding that instructions for the next stage would come later, after the cabinet meeting. Netanyahu made the announcement after speaking with Trump's envoy to the region, Steve Witkoff, who had already revealed to Fox News that talks on the second phase had begun.
The timeline for the second phase, which is supposed to end the war and secure the release of all remaining living hostages, remains unclear. Netanyahu is reportedly pushing to extend the current phase with additional hostage releases, but Hamas has little incentive to agree while Netanyahu refuses to commit to halting the fighting.
The prime minister reiterated Sunday that Israel would "finish the job" and destroy Hamas. So far, 19 hostages have been released under the first phase, along with five Thai nationals who were not part of the original deal. Of the 33 hostages covered by the current stage, 14 remain, six of them alive. Another 73 hostages are still being held in Gaza. Monday will mark 500 days since the hostages were taken.