Tel Aviv, 11 February 2025 (dpa/MIA) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to resume attacks on Gaza if Hamas does not release hostages by Saturday, heightening fears that a fragile three-week-old ceasefire is on the verge of unravelling.

"If Hamas does not return our hostages by Saturday noon, the ceasefire will be terminated, and the [Israel Defense Forces] will return to intense fighting until Hamas is finally defeated," he said following a meeting of the security Cabinet on Tuesday.

Netanyahu, speaking in a video statement from his office, did not say how many hostages would have to be released in order to avert the war's resumption.

He said he ordered the the military to "amass forces inside and around the Gaza Strip" to prepare for fighting.

Israel and Hamas are currently in the middle of a six-week initial ceasefire phase. Along with a pause in the fighting, it foresees 33 Israeli hostages being freed in exchange for 1,900 Palestinian prisoners.

Hamas has so far released 16 Israelis held captive, as well as five Thai hostages who were not covered under the deal.

The Palestinian Islamist group on Monday accused Israel of violating the terms of the deal and said that the planned release of three more Israeli hostages, scheduled for this Saturday, had been postponed indefinitely.

Hamas accused Israel of delaying the return of displaced Gazans to the north of the strip, killing Palestinians in ongoing attacks, and hindering the entry of humanitarian necessities. Israel has rejected the claims.

A short time later, US President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum to Hamas. He said that if "all of the hostages" are not released by midday Saturday then the ceasefire will end and "all hell is going to break out."

Netanyahu said on Tuesday that he "welcomed" Trump's threat.

While the prime minister's public demand regarding the hostages was vague, Israeli media reported that Netanyahu wants Hamas to release all surviving captives who were to be released during this current initial phase of the ceasefire, which would be nine people, but that not all of them have to be freed by Saturday.

MIA file photo