Washington – United States President Donald Trump has given Hamas three to four days to respond to a Gaza peace plan he presented alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier this week.
Speaking to reporters outside the White House on Tuesday, Trump said Israel, Arab nations and Muslim countries were already on board with the proposal and that only Hamas remained. “We’re going to do about three or four days. We’ll see how it is,” he said.
Asked what would happen if Hamas rejected the plan, Trump warned it would lead to what he described as “a very sad end.”
The plan, which Trump described as bringing the conflict closer to resolution than ever before, contains 20 points agreed to by Israel. However, several of its provisions are ones Hamas has historically refused to accept.
Meanwhile in Washington, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced changes to military fitness standards on the same day. He said soldiers in combat roles must now meet what he called “the highest male standard” by scoring at least 70 percent in their respective physical fitness tests.
Hegseth argued that all troops in combat units should be held to uniform, gender neutral standards. “Either you can meet the standard, either you can do the job, either you are disciplined, fit, and trained, or you are out,” he said.
The secretary added that the new rules were not designed to block women from combat but to ensure that those who serve are fully capable of handling the physical demands of the role.
Discussion about this post