“If we have to, we’ll disarm [Hamas],” U.S. President Donald Trump told Fox News’ correspondent Maria Bartimoro in an interview aired on Sunday night, in light of the terrorist group’s recent claims that it has not committed to disarmament.
Trump said that during negotiations for the Gaza ceasefire that went into effect on Oct. 10, Hamas promised it would disarm, but added that “these are very violent people; this is a very violent part of the world.”
When asked who would disarm Hamas, Trump replied, “Whether it’s me, the U.S., or a proxy, could be Israel, with our backing—we won’t have boots on the ground, there’s no reason [for that].”
The president went on to say that he did not place a fixed deadline on Hamas’s disarming. “It’s not a hard time line, but it’s a line in my own mind, and at a certain point, if they don’t do what they’re supposed to do, then we’ll have to do it for them,” he remarked.
He moreover asserted that the “decimation of Iran” during Israel’s 12-day war with the Islamic Republic in June was crucial to achieving the current ceasefire in Gaza, as the threat of Tehran over the region was greatly diminished.
Speaking about the Abraham Accords that Trump initiated in his first presidential term, he said that more countries could sign on “soon.”
“The Abraham Accords are a miracle in a way. And the four countries that went in initially, including the United Arab Emirates ... they stayed in and are doing incredibly well ... I hope to see Saudi Arabia go in and I hope to see others go in. I think when Saudi Arabia goes in, everybody goes in,” he said.
Trump stressed that while Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza was taking place and Iran was still seen as a powerful country in the region, other countries were hesitant to join the Abraham Accords.
Trump further criticized his predecessor administrations in Washington, saying that former presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama “deserted Israel, they deserted everybody, and they backed Iran.”
Had they stayed in power and continued their policy to back Iran, the Islamic Republic “would have right now nuclear power,” he said.
WATCH IN FULL: President Donald J. Trump sits down for an exclusive interview with the great @MariaBartiromo on @FoxNews @SundayFutures pic.twitter.com/qB2LqCVGRP
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) October 19, 2025
The U.S. president made a historic trip to Israel last week, addressing the Knesset in a speech hailing the cooperation between Washington and Jerusalem throughout the war.
“Today, the skies are calm, the guns are silent, the sirens are still and the sun rises on a holy land that is finally at peace and a region that will live, God-willing, in peace for all eternity,” said the American leader.
He declared that the ceasefire deal mediated by his administration would usher in a “golden age” for the Jewish state and the region.
Trump used his Knesset address by calling on additional countries to join the Abraham Accords, which normalized diplomatic ties between Israel and several regional Arab and Muslim nations in 2020.
The peace deals were signed by Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan (in 2021).
