US President Donald Trump on Friday delivered a strongly-worded ultimatum to Hamas, demanding that the Palestinian militant group accept a peace deal with Israel by Sunday, 6 pm (Washington DC time), or face severe consequences.
Trump said Hamas was being given one last chance to end hostilities, release Israeli hostages, and agree to his peace plan. “We will have PEACE in the Middle East one way or the other. The violence and bloodshed will stop. Releases the hostages, all of them, including the bodies of those that are dead, now! An Agreement must be reached with Hamas by Sunday Evening at SIX (6) P.M., Washington, DC time. Every Country has signed on! If this last chance agreement is not reached, all hell, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has already accepted the ceasefire plan. Hamas, however, is still reviewing the proposal.
Calling Hamas a “ruthless” and “violent threat”, Trump described the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel as a “massacre”. He claimed that more than 25,000 Hamas fighters have already been killed since the assault. Urging innocent Palestinians to move to safer locations, he warned: “As for the rest, we know where and who you are, and you will be hunted down, and killed.”
Trump’s 20-Point Gaza Peace Proposal
The White House detailed Trump’s 20-point plan as both a ceasefire framework and a roadmap for Gaza’s postwar governance. Key points include:
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- An immediate end to fighting if both sides accept.
- Release of all Israeli hostages by Hamas within 72 hours.
- Israel to free Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including women and children.
- Creation of a temporary governing board chaired by Trump, joined by international figures such as former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair.
- Reconstruction of Gaza under a technocratic administration supervised by an international “Board of Peace.”
- Deployment of an International Stabilisation Force, phased Israeli withdrawal, expanded humanitarian aid, and an economic plan to make Gaza a “terror-free zone.”
Trump asserted: “This deal also spares the lives of all remaining Hamas fighters! The details of the document are known to the world, and it is a great one for all! We will have peace in the Middle East one way or the other.”