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 23, 2025, 4:34 PM EDT

Aid allowed into Gaza is still falling short of what is needed, WHO head says

While aid being allowed into Gaza has increased, it is still falling well short of what is needed to meet the needs of Palestinians in Gaza, World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Thursday.

"There is an increase in amount after the ceasefire, but what is entering Gaza is significantly below the required target ... So if the aid that's entering Gaza is significantly low, it cannot dent the hunger level and the situation still remains catastrophic, because what's entering is not enough," he said.

What is being allowed into Gaza is only meeting the "tip of the iceberg," he told reporters.

"Currently, you have Kerem Shalom and Kisufim crossings, which are open, and where supplies are flowing into Gaza, but too few supplies; Rafah remains closed for people and supplies. So it's vital that Rafah is urgently reopened," he said

"The Rafah crossing was supposed to be opened last week. A significant amount of aid has built up at Al-Arish in Egypt that's ready to enter Gaza as soon as the crossing is opened," he said.

Oct 23, 2025, 2:55 PM EDT

Retired Israeli general says Hamas will not be ready to give up its weapons

As a fragile ceasefire continues to hold, retired Israel Defense Forces Major General Giora Eiland expressed concern that the deal will fall apart because its unlikely Hamas will be ready to give up its weapons, he told ABC News.

“I don't think that Hamas will be ready to give up its weapons. They might be ready to give up some symbolic positions as a government, but they will never be ready to give up their weapons. That's why I don't believe the Trump plan will successfully be accomplished," he said in an interview in Tel Aviv.

Members of the Israeli forces stand guard as they block the access of Palestinians and foreign activists to olive trees during the olive harvest, near Hebron, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, October 23, 2025.
Mussa Qawasma/Reuters

However, under U.S. pressure, Israel is obliged to give the plan a go, but the only part that really matters for Israel is the "demilitarization" of Gaza, he said.

“We have to give a chance because this is American plan and as far as Israel is concerned, if it does work then it is good for us. But I personally don't believe that it will succeed," he said.

The former IDF general believes that Israel should ensure that there is no reconstruction in Gaza unless “this process of demilitarization is accomplished successfully.”

Displaced Palestinians gather to receive food portions outside the damaged Imam al Shafi'i Mosque, where families have taken shelter, in the Zeitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City, October 23, 2025.
Omar Al-qattaa/AFP via Getty Images

Such a process should, he says, involve destroying all the tunnels, something which a Hamas ambush on IDF troops on Sunday proved has not been completed. Eiland said dismantling Hamas militarily is possible but believes that task now falls to Arab partners of the U.S.

However, Eiland believes Hamas, as a political force, will remain in Gaza.

"You cannot dismantle the sentiment of Hamas which is deep in the hearts and the minds of the people of Gaza. But you can destroy the military abilities," Eiland said.

-ABC News' Tom Soufi Burridge

Oct 23, 2025, 2:48 PM EDT

Rubio says US feels 'confident and positive' about Gaza ceasefire deal

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a brief statement on Thursday after meeting in Israel, expressing optimism and confidence as the fragile ceasefire continues.

"We feel confident and positive about the progress that's being made. We're clear eyed about the challenges too, but the president has made this a top priority," Rubio said.

Rubio's trip to Israel comes on the heels of visits from Vice President JD Vance, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner, who've spent the week traveling to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE to continue coalition building in the region.

The American officials visited several countries in the region this week to help manage and stabilize the ceasefire, according to U.S. officials.

"Now we have more work ahead of us, but we feel very positive about it. We're making good progress. It's amazing that in seven or eight days, the kinds of things and systems that have been set up. No one's under any illusions. We've already done the impossible once, and we intend to keep doing that, if we can," Rubio said.

-ABC News' Mariam Khan

Oct 23, 2025, 1:41 PM EDT

Rubio meets with Netanyahu in Israel

A meeting between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Secretary of State Marco Rubio is now underway, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s office.

Rubio arrived in Israel Thursday after Vice President JD Vance, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and the president's son-in-law Jared Kushner visited Israel and held meetings with Netanyahu and other members of the Israeli government earlier this week.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio listens as President Donald Trump meets with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, October 22, 2025.
Aaron Schwartz/EPA/Shutterstock

-ABC News' Jordana Miller

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