Trump threatens Hamas with military action if group's bloodshed in Gaza persists

US President Donald Trump on Thursday warned Hamas, “We will have no choice but to go in and kill them” if internal bloodshed persists in Gaza, marking a shift in tone and amping up criticism against Hamas as he attempts to maintain his Gaza peace deal.

In a social media post, Trump threatened action if the group doesn't follow through on disarming.

“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,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “Thank you for your attention to this matter.”

The grim warning from Trump came after he previously downplayed the internal violence in the territory since a ceasefire and hostage deal between Israel and Hamas went into effect last week in the two-year war.

The White House did not offer clarification, and the US leader did not elaborate on how he would carry out his warning as stated on his Truth Social platform, but Trump later clarified he wouldn’t send US troops into Gaza.

“It’s not going to be us,” Trump said in an exchange with reporters at the White House. “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.”

The US leader did not specify if he was speaking of Israel, but action by Israeli forces could risk violating the terms of the ceasefire agreement.

On Tuesday, Trump said that Hamas had taken out “a couple of gangs that were very bad” and had killed several gang members. “That didn’t bother me much, to be honest with you,” he said.

But he also made clear he had limited patience for the killings that Hamas was carrying out against rival factions inside the devastated territory.

“They will disarm, and if they don’t do so, we will disarm them, and it’ll happen quickly and perhaps violently,” Trump said.

Hamas facing pressure over hostages' remains

The Hamas-run police maintained a high degree of public security after the militants seized power in Gaza 18 years ago, while also cracking down on dissent.

They largely melted away in recent months as Israeli forces seized large areas of Gaza and targeted Hamas security forces with airstrikes.

Powerful local families and armed gangs, including some anti-Hamas factions backed by Israel, stepped into the void.

Many are accused of hijacking humanitarian aid and selling it for profit, contributing to Gaza’s starvation crisis, but the group now faces even more pressure.

All hostages, both alive and dead, were to be turned over by Monday, according to the Trump-proposed ceasefire. However, if that didn't occur, Hamas was supposed to exchange details about captives who had died and work to turn their remains over as quickly as possible.

Hamas’ armed wing said in a statement on Wednesday that the group honoured the ceasefire’s terms and handed over the remains of the hostages it had access to, but needs specialised equipment to find the remains of 19 other hostages.

In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed Israel “will not compromise”, demanding that Hamas fulfil the requirements laid out in the ceasefire deal about the return of hostages’ bodies.

Although the US has played down the idea that it amounts to a breach, Israel has been incensed that Hamas has not returned all the dead in accordance with the agreement.