Will war return to Gaza? Hamas said ‘inclined’ to honor hostage deal as US & Israel threaten ‘hell’

After threatening to blow up the hostage deal, Hamas is now “inclined to agree” to carry out at least another round of hostage releases this coming Saturday, Palestinian sources told the Israeli state broadcaster Kan News on Wednesday.

The sources said that three Israeli hostages are expected to be released. According to a report by Israel Hayom, Israel’s leadership intends to focus its efforts on securing the release of the nine living hostages remaining on the original list of 33 who were slated for release in the first stage of the ceasefire.

The Kan News report comes after a Hamas spokesman said earlier that day that the terror group wouldn’t accept the “language of threats,” most likely referring to the ultimatum set by U.S. President Trump and endorsed by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Hamas instead reiterated its calls to Israel to fulfill the terms of the agreement, which it alleges Israel violated repeatedly, and stressed that it remained committed to the ceasefire agreement.

Despite this, U.S. and Israeli representatives on Wednesday underlined again that Hamas could face the full resumption of war as soon as Saturday.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio rejected Hamas’ allegations that Israel didn’t fulfill the terms, stressing that Israel “can’t allow Hamas to use the ceasefire to rebuild itself and recover strength,” he continued. “It’s a ceasefire, but it’s not a stupid ceasefire.”

“The president clarified that he expects the hostages to be released by Saturday noon. If this does not happen, there will be a big problem,” Trump’s Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff, who the Jerusalem Post reported is due to visit Israel in the coming days, told reporters on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz visited the military headquarters to “ensure that the IDF is properly prepared for the renewal of the war in Gaza.”

He also warned that if the war would resume, it “will be different in its intensity from the one before the ceasefire – and it will not end without Hamas' defeat and the release of all the hostages, and it will also allow for the realization of President Trump’s vision regarding Gaza.”

The president’s plan to remove most of Gaza’s population and take “ownership” of the enclave during reconstruction was received with universal shock and opposition across the Arab world.

As part of a broad diplomatic offensive to avert Trump’s ideas, Egypt on Tuesday canceled the planned visit of its President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to the White House, while announcing its intention to present its own Gaza reconstruction plan.

On Wednesday, a report by the Qatari al-Araby channel revealed first details of the plan. Egypt reportedly envisions a reconstruction period lasting only 3-5 years, much less than previous estimates by the UN and the U.S.

According to the proposal, the mountains of rubble would first be cleared, while in a second stage, residential complexes would be construction. Reconstruction would start in the south and move northward, enabling the population to remain in the enclave.

Egypt reportedly envisions that several Arab countries, the European Union and the United Nations will assist in the ambitious effort.

Also Wednesday, el-Sisi and Jordanian King Abdullah II stressed they remained unified in their opposition to Trump’s plans, a day after Abdullah met with Trump in the White House.

“The two leaders affirmed the unity of the Egyptian and Jordanian positions, including the necessity of the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip, the continued release of hostages and prisoners and facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid,” according to an Egyptian statement.

It added that reconstruction should start “immediately," stressing the process should be carried out “without displacing the Palestinian people from their land.”