Trump: I held Israel back, but it’ll return to Gaza as soon as I give the word

US President Donald Trump indicates that he’ll allow Israel to resume fighting in Gaza if Hamas doesn’t uphold the terms of the hostage deal inked last week.

“Israel will return to those [Gaza] streets as soon as I say the word,” Trump tells CNN in a phone interview. “If Israel could go in and knock the crap out of them, they’d do that.”

While he recognizes that Hamas has yet to return the vast majority of the 28 bodies of deceased hostages that were held in Gaza before the deal entered into place, he says, “Getting those 20 [living] hostages out was paramount.”

Commenting on Hamas’s execution of several dozen Gazans it alleged had collaborated with Israel, Trump says, “What’s going on with Hamas – that’ll be straightened out quickly.”

Hamas is “going in and clearing out the gangs, violent gangs.”

Pressed on whether those being targeted by Hamas are actually innocent civilians, Trump responds, “I’m doing research on it… We’ll find out about it. It could be gangs plus.”

As for his efforts to coax Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into agreeing to the Gaza ceasefire deal, Trump says, “I had to hold them back… I had it out with Bibi.”

He boasts of the widespread international support his Gaza plan has received. “They want to be part of the Abraham Accords. Now that Iran isn’t a problem.”