MONITORING (SW) – President-elect Donald Trump is demanding the immediate release of Israeli hostages still being held in Gaza, saying that if they are not freed before he is sworn into office for a second term there will be “HELL TO PAY.”
“Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released prior to January 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the United States, there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social site.
He added that, “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the United States of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”
It was not immediately clear whether Trump was threatening to directly involve the U.S. military in Israel’s ongoing campaign against Hamas in Gaza. Trump allies have said he hopes there will be a ceasefire and hostage release deal before he returns to office early next year, reported AP.
Israel’s invasion of Gaza Strip, sparked by Hamas’ Oct 7, 2023 attack, surpasses 13 months. At least 44,466 Palestinians and 1163 Israelis have been killed in the conflict so far.
Hamas’ top leaders including Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Tehran, while Yahya Sinwar killed in southern Gaza. Israel assassinates Hezbollah’s Nasrallah, his likely successor. Israel seeking to carve out ‘buffer zones’ and has no reason to slow down until Trump takes office in Jan. Lebanon ceasefire secured 2 months after Israel’s invasion but violated within days.
