Washington: US President Donald Trump has issued a warning to Hamas, demanding the group begin returning the bodies of the deceased hostages quickly and said that Arab nations involved in peace efforts would “take action” if Hamas fails to comply.
“Hamas is going to have to start returning the bodies of the deceased hostages, including two Americans, quickly, or the other Countries involved in this GREAT PEACE will take action. Some of the bodies are hard to reach, but others they can return now and, for some reason, they are not,” Trump wrote late Saturday evening on Truth Social.
“Let’s see what they do over the next 48 hours. I am watching this very closely,” the President added.
While all the living hostages have been returned from Gaza, the remains of 13 deceased hostages have not been handed over by Hamas.
“Some of the bodies are hard to reach, but others they can return now and, for some reason, they are not,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
“Perhaps it has to do with their disarming, but when I said, ‘Both sides would be treated fairly,’ that only applies if they comply with their obligations.”
Hours before Trump’s social media post, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee met with the families of Itay Chen and Omer Neutra, two US citizens who were killed in the October 7, 2023 attacks.
The President’s post came shortly after a brief meeting aboard Air Force One in Doha with Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.
Qatar has played a significant role in efforts to negotiate peace and ceasefires Gaza.
Following the meeting with Qatar Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, Trump said “the Emir is one of the great rulers of the world… and the Prime Minister has been my friend”.
Trump later told reporters that the two discussed the Gaza peace deal during the stopover before continuing his trip to Asia.
Hamas has returned 15 of the 28 bodies of deceased hostages outlined in the US-proposed ceasefire agreement.
The terror group previously said it had handed over all of the remaining hostages it could access, and that “significant efforts and special equipment” are needed to recover more.
Israel is allowing an Egyptian team with tools and equipment to enter Gaza and assist in the efforts to locate the bodies of the deceased hostages, two Israeli security officials told CNN on Saturday.
(IANS)
