‘Have no choice but to go…,’ Trump issues another stark warning to Hamas if internal…

U.S. President Doland Trump has issued a warning to Hamas that the United States may be forced to take military action against Hamas if the group continues targeting civilians in Gaza. Sharing a post on Truth Social, Trump stated, “If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them. He suggested that the United States would have fewer options left and would have to “go in and kill them.” Trump’s comments have again stirred unrest in the Middle East and raised concerns the U.S. military may take offensive action against Hamas.

Who is Trump addressing with his latest warning?

The stark warning from Trump came after he had previously downplayed the internal violence in Gaza that erupted following the ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas, which took effect last week in the ongoing two-year conflict. Trump subsequently stated he would not deploy U.S. troops into Gaza after issuing the threat directed at Hamas.

“It’s not going to be us,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters, as reported by AP. “We won’t have to. There are people very close, very nearby that will go in and they’ll do the trick very easily, but under our auspices,” he further added.

The US president was not specific about whether he was talking about Israel, but there are military moves by Israeli forces that may void the ceasefire agreement. The shift in his position toward Hamas was significant.

Taken together, Wednesday’s remarks on hostages and the peace deal help explain Thursday’s stark warning, linking humanitarian concerns over civilians and hostages with the possibility of stronger US action if attacks continue.

Describing the grim task in recovering bodies, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, “It’s a gruesome process… They’re digging and they’re finding a lot of bodies. Then they have to separate the bodies.”He elaborated on the conditions in which some bodies were found, noting, “Some of those bodies have been in there a long time, and some are under rubble. They have to remove rubble. Some are in tunnels… that are way down under the earth.”

These comments contextualise the severity of the humanitarian situation on the ground, which underpins his warning about potential US action. Turning to the issue of weapons, Trump stressed the need for Hamas to comply with the peace agreement, saying, “We want the weapons to be given… They’ve agreed to do it. Now they have to do it. If they don’t do it, we’ll do it.”

Building on his earlier comments, he reinforced that Hamas must surrender its weapons, warning of decisive US action if the group fails to comply. “They’re going to disarm, because they said they were going to disarm. And if they don’t disarm, we will disarm them,” Trump said.

Furthermore, he added, “They know I’m not playing games,” emphasising the seriousness of the US stance. Trump made these remarks during a bilateral lunch with Argentinian President Javier Milei at the White House, shortly after the US announced a USD 20 billion financial support package to stabilise Argentina’s economy.

(With agencies inputs)