Trump promised Hamas "hell" over its refusal to release hostages. What the media is saying
- Новости
- World
- Trump promised Hamas "hell" over its refusal to release hostages. What the media is saying
Hamas accused Israel of violating the ceasefire and refused to release another batch of hostages. In response, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would give the group "hell" if it did not release all the captives. He also threatened Egypt and Jordan to cut off aid if they do not accept refugees from the Gaza Strip. What the media write about the situation in the Middle East - in the Izvestia digest.
Associated Press: Hamas refuses to release hostages
The radical Palestinian group Hamas has announced that it will postpone the release of Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip. It accused Israel of violating the cease-fire, which is in its worst crisis since it went into effect three weeks ago. In response, the Israeli military announced it was canceling leave for soldiers assigned to Gaza.
Associated Press
Hamas said its plan to postpone the next hostage release "until further notice" depends on Israel "honoring its commitments." The statement came amid Palestinian and international outrage over recent comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that Palestinians from Gaza would not be allowed to return under his plan for the U.S. to take control of the war-torn territory.
The sides have carried out five exchanges since the first phase of the ceasefire went into effect on Jan. 19, releasing 21 hostages and more than 730 Palestinian prisoners. The next exchange, scheduled for Feb. 15, called for the release of three more Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.
The Jerusalem Post: Israel has lost leverage against Hamas
After the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) withdrew from the Netzarim corridor, which divides Gaza City into two parts, Palestinians who had moved from the north to the south were able to return to their homes. The military also partially opened the Rafah crossing, which separates the Gaza Strip from Egypt in the south. This means Israel no longer has leverage at this stage of the ceasefire agreement.
The Jerusalem Post
It's a test for the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump and his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff. Last week, Trump announced - and repeated on Sunday - his grand Gaza resettlement plan to clear the enclave of residents, relocating them to neighboring Arab countries and rebuilding the territory from the bottom up.
Trump's plan has put pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli government. They expect Hamas to honor its part of the agreement under changed conditions. The IDF is prepared for the scenario that the deal collapses, but a lot can happen while Israel weighs its response before Saturday.
CNN: Trump promised 'hell' for Gaza for refusing to release hostages
Trump called on Israel to cancel its cease-fire agreement with Hamas and "let hell break loose" if the group does not return all hostages still held in the Gaza Strip by noon on Feb. 15. At the same time, he allowed that some hostages may already be dead.
CNN
"As far as I'm concerned, if all the hostages are not returned by Saturday at 12 noon - I think that's the appropriate time - I would say all bets are off and let all hell break loose," the president told reporters in the Oval Office after signing the executive orders. - I would say bring them back by 12 o'clock on Saturday, and if they're not brought back, all of them, not in dribs and drabs, not in twos, threes and fours. Saturday at 12 o'clock, and after that, I'd say the real hell will begin."
When asked to clarify exactly what would happen, Trump replied that "Hamas will know what he means." Since taking office, Trump has made it clear that he is not sure the cease-fire in the Gaza Strip will hold.
The New York Times: Trump wants to cut off aid to Egypt and Jordan
Trump said Feb. 10 that he may cut off aid to Jordan and Egypt if they refuse to accept permanently most Palestinians from Gaza. That should significantly increase pressure on key U.S. allies in the Middle East to support a proposal to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip in order to reconstruct it.
The New York Times
Jordan and Egypt, both major recipients of U.S. military and economic aid, have rejected any proposal to resettle Palestinians in their countries. But Trump said Monday that aid could be jeopardized. "If they don't agree, I will probably withhold aid," he told reporters.
More than half of Jordan's population is estimated to be Palestinian. The country has already seen tensions between citizens of Palestinian origin and those who are not. Accepting Palestinians from Gaza would raise fears among Jordanians that Israel would then try to push residents out of the West Bank.
Reuters: Trump will hold a meeting with Jordan's king
Trump will meet with Jordan's King Abdullah II on Feb. 11. The meeting is likely to be tense after the U.S. president's idea of reconstructing the Gaza Strip and threatening to cut off aid to the Arab country, a U.S. ally, if it refuses to resettle Palestinians.
Reuters
King Abdullah has said he rejects any moves to annex land and displace Palestinians. He is expected to tell Trump on Tuesday that such a move could fuel radical ideas, spread chaos in the region, jeopardize peace with Israel and the country's very survival.
Jordan is already home to more than 2 million Palestinian refugees, their status and numbers a longtime source of concern for the country's leadership. For decades, Amman has depended on Washington as its largest source of economic and military aid, now totaling more than $1 billion a year.
Al-Jazeera: Airplanes and drones have returned to Gaza
The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been quite fragile from day one due to delays in its entry into force, as well as numerous statements by Israeli officials at the political and military levels that they would resume fighting as soon as the hostages were released.
Al-Jazeera
Things have changed dramatically since last night. There are many drones hovering in the sky over Gaza City and the northern part of the Strip at very low altitudes. There were fighter jets that hovered for two to three hours, and there were gunboats that approached the coast of Gaza City and the northern neighborhoods.
People who have returned to the north of the Gaza Strip are waiting for their mobile homes, gasoline trucks and other necessities. They are sleeping in the streets or in tents that they have built themselves, without access to any of the basic supplies that were agreed upon as part of the ceasefire agreement.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
