Israeli AffairsMain

Netanyahu phones Trump to discuss next steps against Hamas after halt in return of bodies

Al-Khamisa News Network - Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a telephone call with U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday evening to discuss Israel’s next steps in the Gaza Strip, after Hamas stopped handing over the bodies of Israeli captives.

According to Israeli sources, Washington is exerting intense pressure on Tel Aviv to postpone any punitive measures against Hamas and give it an additional chance to return the bodies. Trump wrote on his X account: “If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, and that was not part of the deal, we will have no choice but to intervene and kill them.”

Egyptian sources said that moving to the next phase of negotiations faces major complications related to the issue of the bodies, the release process, and the dispute over deploying an international force in the strip. Despite the return of all living captives, 19 Israeli bodies remain held in Gaza.

Responding to a reporter’s question about his threat, Trump said U.S. forces would not intervene directly, noting that “another entity” would carry out any military action “under the American umbrella.”

قناة واتس اب الخامسة للأنباء

Political sources indicate that the United States and Israel are increasingly frustrated by the delay in handing over the bodies, but negotiation channels remain open behind the scenes in hopes of reaching a diplomatic way out before any military escalation.

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