Hamas responds to Trump's ultimatum

Hamas responded after US President Donald Trump on February 10 set a deadline of noon on February 15 for all hostages to be released from the Gaza Strip.

Sami Abu Zuhri, a senior Hamas leader, said on February 11 that US President Donald Trump's demand that Hamas immediately release all Israeli hostages "further complicates the issue" related to the fragile ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

"Mr. Trump must remember that there is an agreement that both sides must respect and this is the only way to return the prisoners (hostages). Threatening language has no value and complicates the issue," AFP quoted Mr. Zuhri.

Hamas announced to stop releasing hostages because of Israeli violations, Mr. Trump issued an ultimatum?

The ceasefire between Hamas and Israel, which took effect on January 19, largely halted more than 15 months of fighting in Gaza and saw Hamas release five groups of Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners released from Israeli jails.

However, tensions spiked last month after Mr Trump proposed taking over Gaza and relocating the territory's more than 2 million residents.

On February 10, Mr. Trump continued to increase the pressure, saying he would call for an end to the ceasefire if all Israeli hostages were not released by noon on February 15.

Hamas members march in Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on February 8.

The ceasefire agreement stipulates that the hostage releases will take place in stages during the first 42-day phase of the deal.

President Trump's latest warning came after Hamas announced on February 10 that the next hostage release would be "postponed until further notice", accusing Israel of failing to fulfill its commitments under the ceasefire agreement, including providing aid, according to AFP.

Hamas later said it had postponed the next hostage release by five days to give mediators time to push Israel to comply with the truce. "The door remains open for the prisoner exchange to take place as planned, once the occupation complies," Hamas stressed.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Hamas' announcement was a "complete violation" of the ceasefire agreement, signaling that fighting could resume, according to AFP. "I have instructed the IDF (Israeli military) to be on the highest alert level for all possible scenarios in Gaza," Katz said.

The IDF later announced it had raised its "readiness level" around Gaza and "decided to significantly reinforce the area".

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hamas-phan-phao-toi-hau-thu-cua-ong-trump-185250211152513064.htm