President Donald Trump issued a major warning to the Hamas terrorist organization on Monday, threatening that “all hell is going to break out” if all the Israeli hostages are not released by noon on Saturday.
Addressing reporters while signing executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday, Trump emphasized that it was Israel’s decision whether or not to cancel the ceasefire deal that was announced just prior to his inauguration last month.
Commenting on the condition of the hostages that were recently released by Hamas terrorists, Trump said, “I looked at the hostages that came in, and they were emaciated. It looked like something out of the 1930s. It’s an absolute disgrace.” Trump told reporters that it looked like the Israeli hostages “came out of the Holocaust.
Trump claimed that Hamas has probably released the hostages “that look at least healthy,” as part of the initial ceasefire agreement phases and that one of the reasons Hamas might be hesitant to release more hostages is that it would make the Hamas terrorists look worse because of the condition of the hostages.
Addressing the ceasefire agreement, Trump told reporters, “As far as I’m concerned, if all of the hostages aren’t returned by Saturday at 12 o’clock, I think it’s an appropriate time, I would say cancel it, and all bets are off and let hell break out. I’d say they ought to be returned by 12 o’clock on Saturday.”
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“And after that, I would say all hell is going to break out,” Trump added. “And I don’t think they’re going to do it. I think a lot of them are dead. I think a lot of the hostages are dead. I think it’s a great human tragedy what’s happened.”
During his comments at the White House, Trump noted that he was speaking for himself and that Israel could “override” his comments. However, the president doubled down on his warning to Hamas, saying, “But from myself, Saturday at 12 o’clock. And if they’re not, if they’re not here, all hell is going to break out.”
Fox News reported that a Hamas spokesperson claimed on Monday that Israel had violated the ceasefire agreement and announced that the next release of hostages would be delayed.
Abu Obeida, a Hamas spokesperson, confirmed that “the release of the Zionist prisoners next Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025, will be postponed until further notice, and until the occupation commits to and provides compensation for the entitlements of the past weeks retroactively.”
According to Fox News, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also released a statement on Monday, saying, “Hamas’ announcement to stop the release of Israeli hostages is a blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement and the hostage release deal.”