President Trump warns Hamas to honor the ceasefire or face swift destruction, while US envoys press Israel and mediators to enforce the Trump-brokered Gaza deal.
In blunt, unmistakable terms from the Oval Office, President Donald Trump warned Tuesday that Hamas has one clear choice: honor the ceasefire built into the U.S.-brokered deal — or be eliminated rapidly and decisively. While stressing he prefers the diplomatic path, Trump made no secret of Washington’s readiness to back forceful action if Hamas continues to violate the truce.
“We’re giving them a chance,” the President told reporters. “They agreed they’d be very straight. They wouldn’t be killing people — and they have killed people. That wasn’t the deal we made.” Pointing to broad regional backing for tougher measures, Trump added that several newly allied states have told him they would be willing to deploy heavy forces into Gaza at his request — a capability he declined to trigger so long as the ceasefire holds.
On social media, Trump turned up the pressure: if Hamas fails to comply, he promised the response would be “FAST, FURIOUS, & BRUTAL.” The message underscores his administration’s hardline posture: diplomacy first, overwhelming force immediately afterward if negotiations collapse.
In Jerusalem, Vice President JD Vance — on a high-profile visit — echoed the warning, telling reporters the terms of the 20-point Trump plan are explicit: Hamas must disarm and behave. Vance made clear that while fighters may be offered limited clemency in certain scenarios, they will not be permitted to continue killing Israelis or Palestinians. “If Hamas doesn’t cooperate,” he warned, “Hamas is going to be obliterated,” though he refrained from setting a timetable.
The ceasefire has already shown its fragility: despite Hamas releasing 20 living hostages under the agreement, the group has stalled on returning the bodies of deceased captives and claims ignorance about their locations — a posture that has inflamed Israeli leaders and families of the missing. Most troublingly, Sunday’s anti-tank missile strike that killed two IDF soldiers highlighted how quickly calm can shatter and why Washington is racing to preserve the deal while keeping military options on the table.
The Trump administration’s stance is clear and uncompromising: the region’s new diplomatic alignment gives the U.S. leverage and partners to enforce peace — but only if Hamas chooses to honor its commitments. Until then, deterrence remains the watchword: negotiations backed by credible force, aimed at ensuring Hamas can never again terrorize Israeli civilians.
