Just a week after the ceasefire came into effect in Gaza, America has warned that Hamas is planning to immediately attack Palestinian civilians. The US State Department issued a statement on Saturday saying that it has credible reports of this, which would be a direct violation of the ceasefire agreement. President Donald Trump has also given a strong message to Hamas, while Israeli soldiers have confirmed the firing on Palestinians by Hamas in Gaza.
The statement came after a video showed Hamas shooting eight blindfolded and kneeling suspects in the street. Hamas called them ‘collaborators and criminals’. According to AFP report, this video is from Sabra area of Gaza City, where masked Hamas fighters wearing green headbands carried out this. The audience raised slogans of ‘Allahu Akbar’. The United Nations Human Rights Office declared it an illegal act.
Israeli soldiers claim
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports that troops retreating from Gaza said they saw from observation posts that armed members of Hamas were shooting at Palestinians who were being targeted for suspected support or resistance to Israeli authorities. A soldier said that what is happening in Gaza is unbelievable. This looks like a massacre. Dozens killed and hundreds injured, who are suspected of aiding Israel. The IDF has instructed soldiers not to interfere.
US President Trump, who initiated the ceasefire, posted on Truth Social that if Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not part of the agreement, then we will have no choice but to kill them. Later he clarified that American troops will not go to Gaza, but Israel can be allowed. Trump said they will surrender their weapons, otherwise we will have them surrender, and it will be quick and probably violent.
Under the ceasefire that came into effect on October 13, Hamas released 20 surviving hostages, while Israel released 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Israel withdrew its troops, but Hamas handed over only 10 of the 28 dead hostage bodies. Israel has threatened to keep the Rafah crossing closed. Hamas claims that it is conducting a security operation against collaborators and looters. But experts say this is an attempt by the group to re-establish control.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas condemned Hamas, calling it a human rights violation. Violence still continues in Gaza, where Hamas and rival tribes are clashing. Experts predict that if Hamas does not stop, the ceasefire will break, which will hamper Trump’s peace plan. At present, tension in the area is at its peak.