US President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to “go in and kill” Hamas if it continues killing people in Gaza, apparently referring to recent shootings of Palestinian civilians following a ceasefire deal with Israel.
Trump’s comments come just days after he said the Hamas shootings, which included public executions, “didn’t bother me much” and described them as killings of gang members.
“If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network.
He did not clarify who “we” referred to, but on Wednesday he stated that “we won’t need the US military” to be involved in Gaza.
Since the partial withdrawal of Israeli forces under the US-backed 20-point ceasefire deal, Hamas has tightened its grip on devastated cities, launching crackdowns and executing alleged collaborators in the streets.
The top US commander in the Middle East, Admiral Brad Cooper, demanded on Wednesday that Hamas stop shooting Palestinian civilians and comply with Trump’s plan.
Yet Trump has previously appeared relaxed about the killings. “That didn’t bother me much, to be honest with you. That’s OK. It’s a couple of very bad gangs. It’s very different than other countries,” he said during a White House cabinet meeting on Tuesday.
During his visit to Israel and Egypt on Monday to celebrate the Gaza truce, Trump added that Hamas had been “open” about wanting to “stop the problems” in the devastated territory. “They have been open about it. And we gave them an approval for a period of time,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One.
