Trump says Gaza ceasefire should be cancelled if Israeli hostages not freed | Donald Trump

Donald Trump has warned that if all the Israeli hostages held in Gaza are not returned by Saturday at noon he would propose canceling the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and letting “all hell break loose”.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump also said he might withhold aid to Jordan and Egypt if those countries do not take Palestinian refugees being relocated from Gaza.

Trump’s comments came after Hamas said it was delaying the release of hostages indefinitely over “violations” of the ceasefire deal, prompting Israel’s defence minister to put the country’s military on alert with orders to prepare for “any scenario in Gaza”.

Mediators fear a breakdown of the three-week-old ceasefire, Egyptian security sources told Reuters, and have postponed talks until they receive a clear indication of Washington’s intent to continue with the phased deal.

Israel’s security cabinet has moved forward a meeting to discuss negotiations on the second phase, which had been set for Tuesday evening.

The army has cancelled all leave for soldiers in the Gaza division, the Kan news outlet reported, in another sign that Israeli authorities are preparing for the resumption of war.

Late on Monday, Hamas said the “door remains open” for the next hostage-prisoner exchange, due to take place on Saturday.

In a statement, the militant group said it had “intentionally made this announcement five days before the scheduled prisoner handover, allowing mediators ample time to pressure [Israel] towards fulfilling its obligations”.

It added: “The door remains open for the prisoner exchange batch to proceed as planned, once the occupation complies.”

More details soon …