Tel Aviv [Israel] February 12 : Following Hamas' recent announcement that it will not release Israeli hostages citing a 'violation' of the ceasefire-hostage deal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to pull out of the whole agreement if Hamas doesn't release the hostages within Saturday's deadline.
The Israeli PM also said that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) forces have been mobilised inside and around the Gaza Strip, and will resume intense military action to 'finally defeat' Hamas if ceasefire falls.
Sharing a post on X on Tuesday, the office of the Prime Minister of Israel said, "In light of Hamas's announcement regarding its decision to violate the agreement and not release our hostages, last night I instructed the IDF to amass forces inside - and surrounding - the Gaza Strip. This action is being carried out at this hour and will be completed very soon."
In another post, it said, "The unanimous decision that I passed in the Cabinet is as follows: If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon, the ceasefire will end, and the IDF will resume intense fighting until the final defeat of Hamas."
On Monday, United States President Donald Trump had said that Israel should end the ceasefire in Gaza and resume military action if all hostages are not released by the end of the week.
Speaking with the reporters, Trump said that Israel might choose to disregard his ultimatum and the Saturday noon deadline, adding that he might speak to PM Netanyahu.
"As far as I am concerned, if all of the hostages aren't returned by Saturday at 12 o'clock, I think it's an appropriate time. I would say, cancel it and all bets are off and let hell break out. I'd say they ought to be returned by 12 o'clock on Saturday," Trump had said, Times of Israel reported
Trump's comments came hours after Hamas announced that it intended to delay the next release of Israeli hostages planned for Saturday, "until further notice," in response to what it claimed were Israeli violations of the ongoing hostage-ceasefire deal.
In a post on X published before Trump spoke, Abu Obeida, spokesman for Hamas' armed wing Qassam Brigades, had said that the handover of the hostages "who were scheduled to be released next Saturday ... will be postponed until further notice, and until the occupation commits to and compensates for the entitlements of the past weeks retroactively," CNN reported.
He added, "We affirm our commitment to the terms of the agreement as long as the occupation commits to them."
Later, Hamas issued a statement claiming that there was still a chance for the planned release to proceed as originally scheduled. The group described the delay as a "warning" to Israel, aimed at pressuring the country into "fully honouring" the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
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