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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave militant group Hamas an ultimatum following a meeting with his security cabinet on Tuesday morning, threatening to resume fighting if the Israeli hostages were not returned by Saturday afternoon, CBS reported. Netanyahu said the Israeli military wouldn’t stop fighting until Hamas was “decisively defeated.”

Hamas announced it would delay the hostages’ release after Abu Obeida, Hamas’ military spokesman, accused Israel of violating the deal. He said Israel delayed the return of displaced people in the northern Gaza Strip and targeted them with gunfire in various areas of the strip. Obeida also alleged Israel, which controls all aid entering the strip, blocked relief supplies from entering.

On Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces said troops had functioned to separate suspects who presented a danger to them near the strip and fired warning shots at a “suspicious vessel” seen offshore as well as a suspect seen approaching troops in the south.

Hamas announced its plan on Monday to delay the release of the next group of Israeli hostages, currently scheduled for Saturday, NPR reported. Hamas said it remains committed to the set agreement, and clarified postponing the release was only a “warning” to Israel to ensure its commitment to the deal.

The temporary ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas has faced complications regarding the release of hostages since it was first reached on Jan. 15. The agreement was set to last six weeks and end the past 15 months of conflict.

Since the start of the ceasefire, only 16 of the 33 hostages scheduled for release have been freed by Hamas and 656 Palestinian prisoners out of an expected 2,000 have been released thus far by Israel. Hamas is set to to release three more hostages on Saturday.

President Donald Trump issued Hamas an ultimatum on Monday saying the negotiation would be off and “hell” would “break out” if the group didn’t release the hostages by Saturday afternoon.

Trump also said he would withdraw aid to Jordan and Egypt if the countries didn’t take in more displaced Palestinians. He recently proposed the United States “own” Gaza and develop real estate. He said displaced Palestinians wouldn’t be allowed back.

Netanyahu and other Israeli politicians welcomed Trump’s pressure to complete the hostage release, including his statements regarding a “revolutionary vision for Gaza’s future.”

Residents in Gaza have expressed fear over Trump’s plan to relocate Palestinians to surrounding countries.

Hamas has until noon on Saturday to release the hostages or Israel will carry through with its threat, vowing to resume hostilities with Hamas.

Published on February 13, 2025 at 12:20 am

Contact Shivika: sgupta38@syr.edu