Release all hostages held in Gaza

WASHINGTON, Mar 06 (AP/Reuters): President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued what he called a "last warning" to Hamas to release all remaining hostages held in Gaza, directing a sharply worded message after the White House confirmed that he had recently dispatched an envoy for unprecedented direct talks with the militant group.

In a statement on his Truth Social platform soon after meeting at the White House with eight former hostages, Trump added that he was "sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job."

"Release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you," Trump said. "Only sick and twisted people keep bodies, and you are sick and twisted!"

The pointed language from Trump came after the White House said Wednesday that U.S. officials have engaged in "ongoing talks and discussions" with Hamas officials, stepping away from a long-held U.S. policy of not directly engaging with the militant group.

Confirmation of the talks in the Qatari capital of Doha came as the Israel-Hamas ceasefire remains in the balance. It's the first known direct engagement between the United States and Hamas since the State Department designated the group a foreign terrorist organization in 1997.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to provide detail on the substance of talks, but said President Donald Trump has authorized his envoys to "talk to anyone." Egyptian and Qatari intermediaries have served as mediators with Hamas for the U.S. and Israel since the group launched its Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war.

"Look, dialogue and talking to people around the world to do what's in the best interest of the American people is something that the president ... believes is a good-faith effort to do what's right for the American people," she said.

Leavitt added that Israel has been consulted about the direct engagement with Hamas officials, and noted that there are "American lives at stake."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office offered a terse acknowledgement of the U.S.-Hamas talks.