President Donald Trump has threatened to use U.S. military force inside Gaza amid a fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.
“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. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social.
The threat comes as Hamas-linked gunmen appeared to carry out a public execution in Gaza on Monday, according to an eyewitness. Video of the event reportedly showed seven people kneeling at gunpoint with masked fighters pointing guns at the back of their heads. The video freezes the moment shots are fired.
The U.S. military has sent about 200 troops to Israel to help support and monitor the ceasefire deal. The civil-military coordination center being stood up by U.S. Central Command will also include partner nations and non-governmental organizations to help coordinate the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza and provide security assistance.
The head of U.S. Central Command is currently in Israel to talk with regional partners and help get these ceasefire initiatives off the ground, a U.S. defense official told Military Times on Thursday.
The U.S. military policy in Gaza remains “no boots on the ground,” per U.S. officials, except for up to two dozen CENTCOM observers who are monitoring the situation inside Gaza.
Meanwhile, Israel is now accusing the Hamas terror group of not holding up its end of the historic ceasefire deal by withholding the remains of dead hostages.
President Trump on Monday traveled to Israel and Egypt to mark the beginning of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. As part of the agreement, Hamas returned the 20 remaining living hostages, while Israel released some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Hamas returned the bodies of two more hostages to Israel on Wednesday, totaling nine of the 28 hostages thought to have died, but said it would take significant effort and special equipment to find the rest. Israeli authorities have returned 30 bodies to Gaza.
Israel vowed to destroy Hamas in retaliation for the October 7 terror attack that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of 250 hostages.