Gaza ceasefire will end if Hamas doesn't free all hostages by Saturday noon: Netanyahu
After nearly 16 months of fighting, Hamas has progressively released detainees since the first phase of a truce began on January 19, but said on Monday that it would not release any more until further notice due to charges that Israel was breaking the deal Families and supporters attend a demonstration calling for the immediate return of hostages held in Gaza, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, outside the prime minister's office in Jerusalem. Reuters Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Tuesday that if Hamas did not free captives by Saturday noon, the truce in Gaza would expire and the military would return to battling the Palestinian militant group until it was defeated. “If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon - the ceasefire will end and the IDF will return to intense fighting until Hamas is finally defeated,” Netanyahu said. A Hamas official earlier said that Israeli hostages could only be brought home if the ceasefire was respected, dismissing the “language of threats” after Trump said he would “let hell break out” if they were not freed.
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