WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Wednesday urged Hamas to release “all 20 Israeli hostages” as a condition for ending the ongoing Israeli military offensive in Gaza, which has killed more than 63,763 Palestinians since October 2023.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump pressed for swift action, adding: “Tell Hamas to IMMEDIATELY give back all 20 hostages.”
He dismissed the idea of partial releases, insisting that nothing short of the return of all captives would be acceptable. “I won’t accept two or three hostages. All 20 must be freed,” he said.
Trump ended his remarks by saying that such a move would pave the way for a ceasefire in Gaza, writing: “IT WILL END.”
Around 250 hostages were taken to Gaza following the cross-border attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023. Israel has killed nearly 64,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023.
Meanwhile, six more people, including a child, have died of malnutrition in the besieged Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, the Palestinian territory’s Health Ministry said on Wednesday, bringing the total number of famine-related deaths since October 2023 to 367, of which 131 were children.
The ministry said that 89 of those deaths, including 16 children, occurred after the UN-backed Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) in August formally declared Gaza City a famine zone.
Aid agencies have repeatedly warned that Israel’s restrictions on humanitarian access, combined with the closure of Gaza’s border crossings since March, have pushed the population of 2.4 million into famine conditions.
At least 13 Palestinians were killed in fresh Israeli attacks on Gaza City, according to medical officials.
Since 27 May, 2,339 people have been killed and over 17,070 wounded while seeking food or supplies, according to the ministry.
