Trump hints at 'action' if Hamas doesn't return hostage bodies

The bodies of 13 deceased hostages are believed to still be in Gaza.

Last Updated: October 24, 2025, 10:52 AM EDT

U.S. officials -- including Vice President JD Vance, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner -- traveled to Israel this week for high-level meetings, discussing the next steps in the delicate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

Israel has accused Hamas of violating the ceasefire deal by withholding the bodies of the remaining 13 deceased hostages thought to have died during or after the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Hamas has said the return of the remaining bodies "may take some time" due to the destruction.

Oct 14, 2025, 6:43 AM EDT

Iran condemns Trump address, accusing him of 'false claims' about Tehran nuclear program

Iranian officials on Tuesday accused U.S. President Donald Trump of "repeating false claims" about the goals of Tehran’s nuclear program, which was struck in June by Israel with the help of the United States.

Trump on Monday touted those strikes, telling Israeli lawmakers in Jerusalem that "many of Iran's top terrorists, including nuclear scientists and commanders, have been extinguished from this earth." He said that the attack "stopped the number one state sponsor of terror from obtaining the world's most dangerous weapons."

The Iranian Foreign Ministry in a statement said Tehran condemned those statements. The ministry described Trump’s statement as an effort "to justify the joint crimes" by Israel and the United States.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi addresses foreign ambassadors to Iran, in Tehran on Oct. 5, 2025.
Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images

"Boasting about and admitting to such crimes only increases the burden of responsibility on the US and reveals the depth of hostility among American policymakers toward the great people of Iran," the ministry said in its statement, which was posted on social media.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday thanked Trump for withdrawing from a former nuclear deal with Iran. He also thanked Trump for U.S. help with Israel's attack on Iran.

President Donald Trump talks with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, Oct. 13, 2025, in Jerusalem.
Saul Loeb/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

"Iran's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program with your enormous help, Mr. President, rolled back," Netanyahu said during his address at the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.

Trump on Monday also called for Iran to come to recognize Israel’s right to exist.

Iran on Tuesday said those statements, in which Trump called for dialogue in the region, were "contradictory" to U.S. actions in the region.

-ABC News' Somayeh Malekian and Kevin Shalvey

Oct 14, 2025, 6:19 AM EDT

5 Palestinians shot and killed in Gaza City, IDF says

The Israel Defense Forces said its troops opened fire on Palestinians, killing five, after they allegedly violated the terms of the ceasefire agreement.

The IDF said that "several suspects were identified crossing the yellow line and approaching IDF troops operating in the northern Gaza Strip, which constitutes a violation of the agreement."

The five approached forces in Gaza City’s eastern Shejaiya neighborhood, the IDF said.

"After multiple attempts to distance them, the suspects refused to comply, prompting troops to open fire to remove the threat," the IDF said on social media.

A Palestinian Civil Defence spokesperson denied the IDF’s claim, telling ABC News that the five people were killed within the safe-zone yellow area.

-ABC News’ Joe Simonetti

Oct 14, 2025, 5:49 AM EDT

Remains of 2 hostages identified, Israel says

Israeli officials on Tuesday confirmed the deaths of two hostages whose remains were returned to Israel on Monday.

The remains of Guy Iluz and Bipin Joshi were among the four deceased hostages who were transferred back to Israel on Tuesday, the Israel Defense Forces said on social media.

The names of the two others whose remains were transferred had not yet been "cleared for publication," the IDF said.

Bipin Joshi, a Nepalese man held hostage in Gaza, captured during the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas is seen in this screen grab taken from a video uncovered by Israel's army, and obtained by Reuters on Oct. 8, 2025.
The Hostages Families Forum via Reuters

Joshi, a Nepalese agriculture student who was in Israel to study, was one of two hostages previously thought to be alive following the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, according to Israeli officials.

Joshi's name had not been included in the list of 20 living hostages published by Hamas. He was 23 when he was abducted, the IDF said.

"It is assessed that he was murdered in captivity during the first months of the war," the IDF said on Tuesday.

Iluz was "abducted alive and injured by Hamas after escaping the Nova music festival," the IDF said.

"Guy died from his wounds after not receiving proper medical treatment while held captive. He was 26 years old at his death," the IDF said on Tuesday.

Oct 13, 2025, 7:53 PM EDT

Biden commends Trump for getting ceasefire deal 'over the finish line'

Former President Joe Biden commended President Donald Trump and his administration's work getting the ceasefire agreement "over the finish line."

"The road to this deal was not easy," Biden said on social media. "My Administration worked relentlessly to bring hostages home, get relief to Palestinian civilians, and end the war. I commend President Trump and his team for their work to get a renewed ceasefire deal over the finish line."

Biden also expressed his hope that the Middle East is on a path to enduring peace and "a future for Israelis and Palestinians alike with equal measures of peace, dignity, and safety."

-ABC News' Molly Nagle

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