President Donald Trump told Israel to “stop the bombing of Gaza” on Friday evening, after Hamas responded favorably to his peace proposal, agreeing to free all hostages and leave power — but not necessarily to disarm.
Trump posted:
Based on the Statement just issued by Hamas, I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE. Israel must immediately stop the bombing of Gaza, so that we can get the Hostages out safely and quickly! Right now, it’s far too dangerous to do that. We are already in discussions on details to be worked out. This is not about Gaza alone, this is about long sought PEACE in the Middle East.
Earlier Friday, Trump had given Hamas an ultimatum of about 48 hours to agree to his proposal, which he unveiled alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday at the White House.
A few hours later, Hamas’s response was delivered to the U.S. via mediators. Al Jazeera reported:
The Palestinian group says that, in order to end Israel’s war on Gaza and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from the enclave, it is ready to release all Israeli captives – both those who are living and dead – according to the exchange plan outlined in Trump’s proposal.
“In this context, the movement affirms its readiness to immediately enter into negotiations through the mediators to discuss the details of this agreement,” Hamas said in a statement shared on Telegram.
It also said it agrees to hand over the administration of Gaza to an independent body of Palestinian technocrats, “based on Palestinian national consensus and Arab and Islamic support”.
The Hamas response notably omitted any commitment to disarm — a key Israeli demand.
Israel has not yet responded; Friday evening is the Jewish Sabbath, and most government functions observe the day of rest and quiet. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may respond on Saturday evening.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of The Zionist Conspiracy Wants You, now available on Amazon. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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