President Donald J. Trump said Hamas has been a ruthless, violent threat for many years, culminating in the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel that killed civilians, including babies, women, children and the elderly. He said more than 25,000 Hamas fighters have been killed in response to the Oct. 7 attack and that most remaining fighters are surrounded and militarily trapped. He said he was prepared to give the order to eliminate them and warned that those who remain will be hunted down and killed.
Trump urged innocent Palestinians to leave areas of imminent danger for safer parts of Gaza and said they would be cared for by those ready to help. He said major Middle East nations, neighboring states and the United States, with Israel signing on, have agreed to a peace deal that spares the lives of remaining Hamas fighters and that the details of the agreement are known to the world.
He demanded that Hamas release all hostages, including the bodies of those who have been killed, and set a deadline of Sunday at 6 p.m. Washington time for an agreement. He warned that if the deadline is not met, there will be an unprecedented response against Hamas and vowed that there will be peace in the Middle East one way or another.