A Houthi soldier (left) operates a machine gun on a pickup truck near a banner with the image of late Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar during an anti-Israel protest rally in Sana’a, Yemen, Oct. 17, 2025.Image: keystone
December 29, 2025, 10:55 p.mDecember 29, 2025, 10:55 p.m
US President Donald Trump has threatened the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas with “consequences” if it does not lay down its weapons as agreed in the “Gaza” peace plan. The US is not seeking escalation, the Republican said at a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. But he made it clear: “You have to disarm yourself within a relatively short period of time.” Trump added that if Hamas did not comply, it would be “terrible” for them. “It’s going to be really, really bad for her.”
Trump: Other Middle East states ready to “destroy” Hamas
Trump emphasized that other states in the Middle East had already announced that they would intervene if Hamas did not disarm itself as agreed. “If they don’t lay down their arms now, these countries will destroy them,” he said.
Israel and the Islamist terrorist organization Hamas agreed to the “peace plan” pushed forward by the USA in October. There has been a ceasefire since October 10, but deadly violence continues.
All conditions of the first phase are still not met
The upcoming second phase of Trump’s 20-point peace plan calls for the disarmament of Hamas and the establishment of an international stabilization force. However, the terrorist organization strictly refuses to lay down its weapons.
To date, not all of the conditions of the first phase of the plan have been met. Although all of Hamas’ remaining hostages were released, Israeli troops withdrew from parts of the Gaza Strip in return. The body of a kidnapped hostage is still in the Gaza Strip.
The war was triggered by the Hamas massacre in Israel on October 7, 2023, in which around 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 others were abducted to the Gaza Strip. Since then, more than 70,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-controlled health authority. (sda/dpa)