U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has issued a fierce warning to Hamas, demanding the immediate release of hostages kept during the continuing dispute in Gaza. In a heated statement, Trump said, "All hell will break loose" if the hostages are not freed by the deadline of his inauguration on 20th January.

On Tuesday at local time, during a news conference at his property, Mar-a-Lago, in Florida, Donald Trump stated, "It will not be good for Hamas, and it will not be good, frankly, for anyone. All hell will break out. I don't have to say anymore, but that's what it is," counting that he said, "there should have never been" the attack on October 7, 2023, by Hamas on Israel he meant.

Steve Witkoff, Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, expressed optimism about the current discussions aimed at fulfilling a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, according to a CNN report.

"It's the president, his reputation, the things that he has said that are driving this negotiation, and so hopefully, it'll all work out and we'll save some lives," he added.

Prior to that, it had also been reported that retiring officials from the Biden administration had been in charge of the negotiation talks. In contrast, their prospective Trump colleagues were being informed about the developments.

On the opposite side, a senior administration Biden official gave a more aware view of the negotiations. As per the conversation with CNN, the official stressed that the current negotiations and cease-fire discussions are challenging. 

At the moment of the press conference, Trump declined to rule using military force to seize the Panama Canal and Greenland's authority and "economic force" to obtain Canada, according to the CNN report.

When questioned about whether he would govern operating "military or economic coercion" to obtain those territories, he said, "No, I can't assure you on either of those two, but I can say this: we need them for economic security."