US President Donald Trump said on Monday he would give Hamas a chance to honor a Gaza ceasefire deal with Israel, but warned the group would be “exterminated” if it did not.
– We reached an agreement with Hamas that they will be very good, that they will behave decently, that they will be kind – Trump told reporters at the White House while hosting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
– And if they don’t, we will go and exterminate them, if we have to. They will be exterminated, and they know it – he said.
Trump’s comments came as two of his top mediators met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after weekend violence threatened to destroy a fragile truce brokered by the US president nearly two weeks ago.
Trump, however, insisted that US forces would not be involved against Hamas, saying the dozens of countries that have agreed to join the international stabilization force for Gaza would be “happy to go in”.
– Besides, you have Israel who would enter in two minutes, if I asked them to enter. At the moment, however, we haven’t said that. We will give it a little chance and hopefully there will be a little less violence. But right now, you know, these are violent people,” Trump said.
Trump said Hamas is now far weaker, especially given that regional ally Iran is unlikely to intervene on its behalf following US and Israeli attacks this year, AFP reports.
(Vijesti.ba/Fena)
