Trump stands firm with Israel: “Hamas had a choice

The White House has thrown its full weight behind Israel’s renewed offensive in Gaza, with President Donald Trump giving Jerusalem the green light to strike after Hamas scuttled a ceasefire by refusing to free more hostages. “They could have extended the peace, but they chose war,” a top U.S. official declared Tuesday, hours after Israel’s jets roared back into action. The State Department doubled down, pinning Gaza’s “horrible suffering” on Hamas’s decades of deadly choices—a stark rebuke as the conflict reignites and aid stalls at the border.

The Trump administration’s unequivocal support crystallized Tuesday, following Israel’s surprise overnight assault that shattered weeks of uneasy calm. Washington sources confirmed Israel looped in the U.S. beforehand—a sign of lockstep coordination—as Hamas clung to 59 captives, defying mediators’ pleas. White House National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes laid it bare: “Hamas could have released more hostages and extended the ceasefire. Instead, they opted for refusal and war.” The statement, issued as smoke rose over Gaza, echoes Trump’s unwavering line: Israel’s self-defense trumps all, with Hamas’s intransigence the root of the chaos.

The U.S. position sharpened Monday, hours before the strikes, when State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce faced tough questions at a press briefing. Said Arikat of Jerusalem’s Al-Quds newspaper pressed her on Gaza’s “very dire” plight—aid trucks idling at Kerem Shalom since Israel halted deliveries on March 2, just as Ramadan began. “People need food and water,” Arikat said. “Isn’t starvation as pressure a war crime?” Bruce didn’t budge: “For the horrible suffering of the Gazan people, we know where that sits. It sits with Hamas.” She tied their misery to “choices Hamas has made throughout the years,” a pointed jab at the group’s history of rocket attacks, tunnel-building, and rejectionism since seizing Gaza in 2007.

The overnight barrage, which killed over 300 per Palestinian reports, capped a tense buildup. A ceasefire late last year freed dozens of hostages, but talks—spearheaded by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Arab go-betweens—crashed when Hamas balked at releasing the rest, citing “impossible conditions” per Israeli accounts. Israel’s answer was swift: strikes on Hamas targets, a message that no deal means no pause. Hours after Bruce’s briefing, Israel announced the operation, citing Hamas’s “repeated refusal” to extend the truce. Diplomatic insiders say the U.S. still backs mediation to free the captives, but Trump’s team has handed Israel “absolute backing” to pound Hamas until it bends or breaks. “This isn’t about punishing Gaza—it’s about forcing Hamas to choose,” one source told Srugim.

The U.S. stance stretches beyond Gaza. Asked Monday about rising tensions in the West Bank—Israeli raids in Jenin and Tulkarem—Bruce stood firm: “We stand steadfastly with Israel. They’ve got security concerns, and we support their decisions in that framework.” It’s a blanket endorsement of Israel’s moves, north and south, as it battles threats on multiple fronts. For Trump, it’s vintage policy—since reclaiming the presidency in January 2025, he’s doubled down on his pro-Israel tilt, from the 2018 Embassy move to this week’s nod, a lifeline to Netanyahu amid a war-weary public and coalition squabbles.

Israel’s war, sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023, massacre of over 1,200, has raged 17 months, testing a nation split between resolve and exhaustion. Hardliners like Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir—who’s jockeying to rejoin the cabinet—hail the strikes, while hostage families quake for their loved ones’ safety. Globally, Europe and Turkey decry the violence, Yemen’s Houthis vow retaliation, but the U.S. shrugs them off. At home, the State Department’s words cut through: Hamas owns Gaza’s pain—17 years of rule, billions in aid diverted to war, and now a refusal to yield.

For now, as bombs fall and mediators scramble, Trump’s blank check to Israel holds firm. Bruce’s parting shot Monday—“That’s what we continue to work on”—nods to ongoing U.S. efforts, but the message is clear: Hamas picked this fight, and America’s not blinking.

JNS contributed to this article.