White House pushes to preserve Gaza truce amid fears of Israeli escalation

The Trump administration is working to preserve the fragile Gaza peace deal as officials express concern that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may resume a full-scale assault on Hamas, according to U.S. officials, according to The New York Times.

Vice President JD Vance travelled to Israel on October 20 to join Middle East peace envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential adviser Jared Kushner, both key figures in brokering the U.S.-mediated ceasefire that ended the two-year war between Israel and Hamas earlier this month.

President Donald Trump warned that he would allow Israeli forces to “eradicate” Hamas if violence continues.

“We made a deal with Hamas that, you know, they’re going to be very good. They’re going to behave. They’re going to be nice,” Trump said at the White House. “And if they’re not, we’re going to go and we’re going to eradicate them if we have to. They’ll be eradicated. And they know that.”

The ceasefire, now 10 days old, has been shaken by renewed violence, including a Palestinian missile attack that killed two Israeli soldiers. Trump administration officials say their immediate goal is to prevent Netanyahu from abandoning the agreement.

Trump has downplayed Israeli claims that Hamas violated the truce, describing the latest clashes as a “rebellion” by rogue fighters. “Some Hamas fighters got very rambunctious,” he said, while reiterating that if hostilities persist, Israel would have U.S. backing to eliminate the group.

According to a senior official, the U.S. is working with regional partners, including Türkiye and Egypt, to stabilise the situation, deliver humanitarian aid, recover the remains of Israeli hostages, and define next steps toward Hamas’s demilitarisation.

“This is the moment that matters,” said Khaled Elgindy of Georgetown University. “This is what is going to set the tone for if and how this cease-fire holds, or what it even means.”

By Aghakazim Guliyev