U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a stark ultimatum to Hamas, demanding the immediate release of all remaining hostages by noon on Saturday or risk an end to the current ceasefire, allowing Israel to resume its military offensive. Speaking from the Oval Office on Monday night, Trump warned that if all hostages were not freed by the deadline, the ceasefire should be scrapped.
“As far as I’m concerned, if all of the hostages aren’t returned by Saturday at 12 o’clock, I would say cancel it. All bets are off, and let hell break out,” he told reporters, though he did not specify which time zone the deadline applied to.
Trump also made it clear that partial releases would not be acceptable, stating:
“Not in dribs and drabs, not two and one and three and four. All of them by Saturday at 12 o’clock. And after that, I would say, all hell is going to break out.”
When asked whether he would send U.S. troops to intervene, Trump remained vague, saying, “We’ll see what happens.”
He did not clarify whether his threat referred to Israeli or U.S. military action, adding, “You’ll find out, and they’ll find out too. Hamas will find out what I mean.”
Later, Trump emphasized that Israel had the final say on its military strategy but reiterated his personal stance:
“But from myself, Saturday at 12 o’clock, and if they’re not here, all hell is going to break out.”
Trump expressed fears that many hostages were already dead, citing the malnourished condition of three recently released captives: Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami, and Or Levy.
The men had lost a significant amount of weight after being held for the past 16 months.
“Based on what I saw over the last few days, they’re not going to be alive for long,” Trump said, comparing their condition to Holocaust victims.
Earlier on Monday, Hamas announced it was postponing a planned hostage release, accusing Israel of failing to uphold its end of the ceasefire deal.
Abu Obeida, a spokesperson for Hamas’ military wing, stated:
“Hostages who were scheduled to be released next Saturday … will be postponed until further notice, and until the occupation commits to and compensates for the entitlements of the past weeks retroactively.”
