Rubio: Trump would not accept partial hostage release amid Hamas letter report

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the White House has not received the reported Hamas letter offering a 60-day ceasefire in exchange for releasing half the remaining Gaza hostages, and he reiterated President Donald Trump's position that the effort must secure the release of all hostages. 'We haven't seen the letter. We don't have that letter, and even if we did, it wouldn't matter. The president has already made clear he's not interested in 60 days, 10 people. He wants all the hostages out, all 48, including the 20 who are alive, the 28 who are deceased,' Rubio said on Fox & Friends.

Rubio added that the message may have been delivered to the media rather than to the White House.

Per prior reporting, a senior Trump official and a second source directly involved in negotiations told Fox News Hamas had drafted the letter to be delivered to Trump sometime this week.

This comes after the president said he wanted the remaining hostages freed "now – right now," during his U.K. visit last week. Trump had previously issued a warning to Hamas in a Truth Social post, saying there would be consequences if the group did not accept terms that led to a full hostage release.

Rubio elaborated on what lies ahead for Hamas if the group fails to surrender, warning that Israeli forces are "right at the doorstep of Gaza City," where Hamas leaders are currently concentrated, and have "begun an operation to go in."

"It may take a while, but they're not going to survive the Israeli push," he warned. "The sooner that happens, the sooner peace will begin."

The remarks underscore the ongoing political dimension of hostage diplomacy in the United States as officials weigh terms of potential deals, the posture of American support for Israel, and the humanitarian and regional consequences of a prolonged confrontation in Gaza.