Trump threatens Hamas after secret talks with terror group revealed

Washington: US President Donald Trump has issued a stark warning to Hamas to release all its hostages in Gaza just hours after news broke that his administration has been conducting secret talks with the militant Palestinian group.

US special envoy for hostage affairs Adam Boehler held direct negotiations with Hamas in Doha, Qatar in recent weeks, sources briefed on the conversations said, in another significant foreign policy shift for the United States.

US President Donald Trump meets with eight Israeli hostages released from Gaza: Iair Horn, Omer Shem Tov, Eli Sharabi, Keith Siegel, Aviva Siegel, Naama Levy, Doron Steinbrecher and Noa Argamani at the White House. Credit: POTUS/X

Such talks run counter to long-standing US policy against direct contacts with groups that Washington lists as foreign terrorist organisations. The US State Department designated Hamas a terrorist group in 1997.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office issued a statement after the news about the talks broke, saying: “Israel has expressed to the United States its position regarding direct talks with Hamas.”

But an Israeli official told The New York Times that Israel did not learn about the talks from the United States, instead hearing about them through “other channels”. A member of Israel’s negotiating team then told Netanyahu and informed the team of US officials in Doha that Israel was aware of the talks, the official said.

At the White House this morning (AEDT), Trump met a group of hostages who had been released recently under a Gaza ceasefire deal and issued a stark new threat against Hamas in a social media post.

Hamas fighters prepare for a handover ceremony of Israeli hostages in Gaza last month.Credit: AP

He demanded that Hamas “release all of the hostages now, not later,” including the remains of dead hostages, “or it is OVER for you”.

“I am sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job, not a single Hamas member will be safe if you don’t do as I say,” he said. “Also, to the People of Gaza: A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD! Make a SMART decision. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW, OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY LATER!”

Trump’s warning echoed his “hell to pay” threat before his January 20 return to the White House, which was followed by the ceasefire and hostages deal in mid-January that he claimed credit for before then-president Joe Biden left office.

Until recently the US has avoided direct engagement with the Islamist group, which carried out a cross-border raid into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, that killed 1200 Israelis and triggered the devastating war in Gaza that has left more than 48,000 people dead, according to Palestinian authorities.

Palestinians in southern Gaza gather for iftar dinner to break their fast on the first day of Ramadan on Saturday.Credit: AP

The previous US role in helping to secure a ceasefire and hostage release deal in the Gaza conflict has been dealing with Israel and Qatari and Egyptian mediators, but without any known direct communications between Washington and Hamas.

It did not elaborate, but Israel – along with many other countries – considers Hamas a terrorist organisation and refuses to negotiate directly with the group.

Boehler’s office declined to comment.

It was unclear when or how the Israeli government was informed of the talks.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did representatives for Hamas.

The sources said the talks have focused on gaining the release of American hostages still held in Gaza, but one said they also have included discussions about a broader deal to release all remaining hostages and how to reach a long-term truce.

One of the sources said the effort included an attempt to gain the release of Edan Alexander, from New Jersey, who is believed to be the last living American hostage held by Hamas. He appeared in a video published by Hamas in November 2024.

Four other US hostages have been declared dead in absentia by Israeli authorities.

Jonathan Panikoff, a former US deputy national intelligence officer on the Middle East, said Trump’s unconventional diplomatic approach carried both risks and opportunities.

“On one hand, engaging Hamas directly could make it easier to get US hostages out and help reach a long-term agreement,” Panikoff, now at the Atlantic Council think tank, said. “On the other, there’s a reason the US doesn’t usually negotiate with terrorist groups – knowing Washington will do so incentivises them to repeat the behaviour in the future.”

Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff plans to return to the region in coming days to work out a way to either extend the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal or advance to the second phase, a State Department spokesperson said on Monday.

Fighting in the Gaza Strip has been halted since January 19 and Hamas has exchanged 33 Israeli hostages and five Thais for some 2000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

Reuters

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