CAIRO — The Hamas militant group on Thursday brushed off President Donald Trump’s latest threat and reiterated that it will only free the remaining Israeli hostages in exchange for a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Hamas accused Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of trying to back out of the ceasefire agreement they reached in January. The agreement calls for negotiations over a second phase in which the hostages would be released in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners, a permanent ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Hamas spokesman Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua said the “best path to free the remaining Israeli hostages” is through negotiations on that phase, which were supposed to begin in early February. Only limited preparatory talks have been held so far.

On Wednesday, Trump issued what he said was a “last warning” to Hamas after meeting with eight former hostages. The White House meanwhile confirmed it had held unprecedented direct talks with the militant group, which Israel and Western countries view as a terrorist organization.

“Release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Only sick and twisted people keep bodies, and you are sick and twisted!”

Both Israel and Hamas have a longstanding practice of holding onto the remains of their adversaries in order to trade them in hostage-prisoner deals.

Hamas is believed to still have 24 living hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war, including Israeli-American Edan Alexander. It is also holding the bodies of 34 others who were either killed in the initial attack or in captivity, as well as the remains of a soldier killed in the 2014 war.

Hamas released 25 Israeli hostages and the bodies of eight more in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in the first, 42-day phase of the ceasefire, which ended on Saturday.

Israel supports what it says is a new U.S. plan for the second phase in which Hamas would release half the remaining hostages immediately and the rest when a permanent ceasefire is negotiated. Hamas has rejected the proposal and says it is sticking with the agreement signed in January.

Israel has cut off the delivery of food, fuel, medicine and other supplies to Gaza’s roughly 2 million Palestinians in an attempt to pressure Hamas into accepting the new arrangement. It has threatened “additional consequences” if Hamas does not resume the release of hostages.

It’s unclear if the U.S.-Hamas talks made any progress. The Trump administration has pledged full support for Israel’s main war goals of returning all the hostages and eradicating Hamas, which may be incompatible.

Hamas-led militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7 attack and took a total of 251 people hostage. Most have been released in ceasefire agreements or other arrangements. Israeli forces have rescued eight living hostages and recovered the bodies of dozens more.

Israel’s military offensive has killed over 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were militants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 fighters, without providing evidence.

The offensive destroyed vast areas in Gaza and displaced most of its population. Hundreds of thousands of people are living in tents, schools-turned-shelters or war-damaged buildings, and the population relies on international aid.

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JERUSALEM — A Hamas spokesperson said Monday the group will delay the next planned release of hostages in the Gaza Strip after accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement.

The announcement was the first major crisis for the fragile ceasefire. It came at a sensitive time, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under heavy pressure to bring home hostages after last Saturday’s release, in which three Israelis came home emaciated after 16 months in Hamas captivity.

Also on Monday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ended a controversial system that paid stipends to the families of Palestinian prisoners, including those convicted in deadly attacks on Israel. The step is aimed at improving relations with the new administration of President Donald Trump. The U.S., along with Israel, has said the so-called “martyrs fund” rewarded violence against Israel.

Israel and Hamas are in the midst of a six-week ceasefire during which Hamas has committed to releasing 33 hostages captured in its Oct. 7, 2023, attack in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners.

The sides have carried out five swaps since the ceasefire went into effect last month, freeing 21 hostages and over 730 Palestinian prisoners. The next exchange, scheduled for Saturday, called for three more Israeli hostages to be freed in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

Defense Minister Israel Katz said Hamas’ plan do delay the next release of hostages was “a complete violation” of the ceasefire agreement and that he instructed the Israeli military to be on the highest level of alert. Netanyahu did not immediately comment.

Obeida said Israel has continued to obstruct key provisions of the deal, specifically regarding humanitarian aid.

“The resistance leadership has closely monitored the enemy’s violations and its failure to uphold the terms of the agreement,” Obeida said. He said Israel had violated the terms of the ceasefire by not allowing Palestinians to return to northern Gaza, carrying out strikes across the Gaza Strip, and failing to facilitate the entry of humanitarian aid.

The Hostages and Missing Family Forum, which represents many of the hostage families, called on mediating countries to restore the existing deal.

“Recent evidence from those released, as well as the shocking conditions of the hostages released last Saturday, leaves no room for doubt — time is of the essence, and all hostages must be urgently rescued from this horrific situation,” the Forum said.

Under the new system announced by Abbas, the Palestinian president, prisoners’ families will still be eligible for government assistance, but only depending on their financial needs. Previously, payments were determined based on the amount of time a prisoner had spent in prison.

The system will also be transferred from the Palestinian government to an outside foundation.

There was no immediate reaction from the U.S. or Israel.

During Trump’s first term, the U.S. halted assistance to the Palestinian Authority because of the martyr’s fund, while Israel has withheld hundreds of millions of dollars of tax transfers to the cash-strapped authority because of the policy.

A senior Palestinian official said the Palestinians have informed the Trump administration of the decision and hope the U.S. legislation cutting assistance, known as the Taylor Force Act, will be rescinded and that Israel will unfreeze the transfers. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was discussing internal deliberations.