Hamas Terrorists - Photo by Marco Longari/AFP/Getty Images
WASHINGTON, March 5 (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump told Hamas to immediately release all hostages held in Gaza in what he called his “last warning” to them while also urging the terrorist group’s leadership to leave the Palestinian enclave.
Trump posted on Truth Social: “This is your last warning! For the leadership, now is the time to leave Gaza, while you still have a chance. Also, to the People of Gaza: A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD!” The president added that there will be “hell to pay later” if hostages are not released.
This statement comes as the Trump administration has been conducting secret talks with Hamas to try to secure the release of U.S. hostages seized in Israel and held in Gaza, two sources briefed on the conversations told Reuters.
U.S. hostage affairs envoy Adam Boehler has the authority to talk directly with Hamas, the White House said when asked about the discussions, which run counter to longstanding policy against negotiating with groups that the U.S. has designated as terrorist organizations.
Boehler and Hamas officials met in Doha in recent weeks, the sources said. It was not clear who represented Hamas. At the White House, President Donald Trump met a group of hostages who had been released recently under a Gaza ceasefire deal, a White House official said.
The U.S. had long avoided direct engagement with the Islamist group, which carried out a cross-border raid into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, triggering a devastating Gaza war. The U.S. State Department designated Hamas a terrorist organization in 1997.
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