On Dec. 2, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump posted a message on his social media platform Truth Social, referring to the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza and demanding their release by Jan. 20, 2025, the day of his inauguration.
However, due to the language and words he used in this post, it was claimed that Trump was very angry with both Hamas and the Israeli government for the fact that the hostages, including U.S. citizens, have still not been released.
The trigger for Trump’s reaction is thought to have been a video released by Hamas. The video showed the body of Omer Neutra, an Israeli soldier and American citizen who had been held hostage since Oct. 7, and stated that the reason for Neutra’s death was Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s refusal to agree to a cease-fire.
It seems that Trump, after watching this video, went berserk and wanted to intimidate all those responsible for the deaths of the hostages and their continued non-release.
What exactly did Trump say?
Trump’s first post was on the subject: “Everybody is talking about the hostages who are being held so violently, inhumanely and against the will of the entire World, in the Middle East – But it’s all talk and no action!”
And then he continued, threatening: “Please let this TRUTH serve to represent that if the hostages are not released before Jan. 20, 2025, the date that I proudly assume Office as President of the U.S., there will be ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East, and for those in charge who perpetrated these atrocities against Humanity.”
Finally, at the end of his post, he made a clear threat, demanding the immediate release of the hostages. “Those responsible will be hit harder than anybody has been hit in the long and storied History of the U.S. of America. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW!”
As you can see, Trump’s posts contain very harsh threats, although no names are mentioned. The problem is that Trump can do what he wrote. That is, regardless of who is responsible for the hostages and how much of a problem they are, he will identify a person responsible and then use the power at his disposal to punish that person.
Hypocrisy, interlocutors’ reaction
The Israeli media and the Jewish lobby in the U.S. saw Trump’s words as tangible support for Israel and praised him for his backing. On this occasion, they insisted that if anyone could bring peace to the Middle East, it was none other than Trump, claiming that he would stop the war in Gaza once he took office and began writing that Hamas had no choice but to surrender.
Netanyahu, who knows Trump’s temperament well, did not take Trump’s words to heart and thanked him for his support for the release of the hostages.
Following Trump’s statement, Basem Naim, a Hamas leader, issued a statement saying that Netanyahu, who has not agreed to any cease-fire deal, was solely responsible for the hostages not being released and that they did not take Trump’s threats personally.
The fact that Trump’s statements and threats, supposedly about the seven U.S. hostages, were not mentioned when Israel killed U.S. citizens in the West Bank and Gaza at different times has led to the interpretation that Trump is acting hypocritically on this issue.
Trump, who utters harsh words as the above, did not react to the deliberate killing of Shireen Abu Aklehand, a Palestinian-born U.S. journalist, by Israeli soldiers in the West Bank in 2022, nor to the deliberate killing of Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi, a Turkish-born U.S. activist and humanitarian aid volunteer, by an Israeli sniper in the West Bank in September 2024. Therefore, it is not only insincere but also unfair for Trump, who showed no sensitivity to the U.S. citizens at the time, to shout about it today.
Trump’s words also give clues to his possible Palestinian policy. Although he did not mention any names, his threats against Hamas and the deadline for the release of the hostages by the time he takes office contain some clues as to how his possible Palestinian policy will be shaped. Similarly, it will be remembered that the Palestinians had a very difficult time during Trump’s first term and had to lose 70 years of gains, even if only a little. Therefore, taking into account the negative perception that Israel has created in Western public opinion, especially after Oct. 7, it is understood that Trump promises a worse process for the Palestinians than his first term.
It is understood that Trump’s Middle East policy will again be shaped in an Israel-centred manner and that he will try to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian issue in Israel’s favor by condoning the annexation of even the West Bank, including Gaza, by Israel.
Trigger a new cease-fire?
Although Trump’s threats were unacceptable, it can be said that they were also effective in overcoming the deadlock in Gaza and initiating a possible cease-fire process. After Trump’s remarks, Egyptian-mediated cease-fire talks between Israel and Hamas accelerated. It has even been reported that the Israeli side has submitted a draft cease-fire proposal to Egypt for a truce of between 42 and 60 days and is awaiting Hamas’ response.
The plan envisages Israel halting its attacks and releasing a specified number of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of 33 of the 100 hostages, including women, the elderly and the wounded.
However, although the Israeli side is said to have presented such a cease-fire plan, it was emphasized that this was not a plan to end the war and that Israel would resume attacks at the end of the specified period and continue until Hamas is completely eliminated.
Without paying attention to the norms of international law or the reality in the region, based solely on the power and role of the U.S. in the global system, Trump acts like a street bully and tries to put all the blame on Hamas and the Palestinians in general, without any reference to the real culprit of this process, Israel.
If Trump cared so much about the lives of U.S. citizens, he should have reacted to the deliberate killing of Shireen Abu Akleh and Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi by Israeli soldiers. Trump, who did not react at all that day and even ignored these incidents, seems to be using such language against Hamas today to please both the extreme supporters of Israel in his Cabinet and the Jewish lobby that supports him.
However, it should not be forgotten that the Palestinian people and Hamas have nothing more to lose, especially after Oct. 7. Therefore, rather than deterring them, Trump’s words are expected to sharpen them further and increase the hostility of the Palestinian people toward Israel, the U.S. and the West.
As a result, it is clear that Trump, who won the support of the U.S. public by promising to end wars, will pursue a policy that will increase conflicts in the world, let alone end wars, due to the Jewish lobby and evangelicals with whom he is overly engaged.
Unfortunately, it seems that the Palestinians will be the biggest victims of this policy.