"Finish the job": Trump says Israel must "get rid" of Hamas after ceasefire talks break down

President Trump signaled on Friday that after the breakdown in negotiations for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage deal, he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should escalate the war in order to "get rid" of Hamas. Why it matters: The crisis in the negotiations comes as the humanitarian situation grows increasingly catastrophic, with more and more reports from the UN and other agencies of Palestinians dying of starvation. Trump made the comments after a phone call with Netanyahu. What he's saying: "Hamas didn't really want to make a deal. I think they want to die and it's very bad. It got to a point where you have to finish the job."Trump added that the Israelis "are gonna have to fight and they are gonna have to clean it up — you will have to get rid [of Hamas]," Trump told reporters before departing for a trip to Scotland.He added that he always thought Hamas wouldn't want to release the remaining hostages because the group didn't want to lose their "bargaining chip" and "their protection.""Now they are going to be hunted down," Trump said of Hamas. Zoom out: Israel has been hunting down Hamas militants in Gaza for nearly two years, and has killed most of the military leadership that was in place during the Oct. 7 attacks.The group's negotiators, based in Doha, have long argued it was Israel that didn't want to stop the fighting.In the past week, though, Israel agreed to a ceasefire proposal from the Qatari and Egyptian mediators but Hamas attempted to make a counter-offer which Israel swiftly rejected.State of play: That led to a breakdown in the indirect negotiations in Doha, which had been showing considerable progress. Israel recalled its negotiators, while White House envoy Steve Witkoff said Hamas' response "shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire" and said the U.S. would now consider "alternative options" for bringing the hostages home.On Friday, Netanyahu echoed Witkoff's remarks and said Israel and the U.S. would seek "alternative options to bring our hostages home, end Hamas's terror rule, and secure lasting peace for Israel and our region."Between the lines: A senior Israeli official said it's still unclear what these alternatives are. The official said it was necessary "to create a crisis" to break the deadlock in talks, but argued it was not in Israel's interests for the talks to collapse completely.

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What is inside the GHF aid box being distributed in Gaza?