US President Donald Trump has said that the Palestinian resistance group, Hamas, took out "a couple of" gangs, without identifying which groups, even as Israel is known to have propped up armed gangs who have been implicated in looting essential aid and the recent killing of a prominent journalist.
"They did take out a couple of gangs that were very bad, very, very bad gangs. And they did take them out, and they killed a number of gang members, and that didn't bother me much, to be honest with you. That's okay," Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday, alongside Argentinian President Javier Milei.
"It's a couple of very bad gangs."
His remarks came a day after Hamas and Israel carried out a captive-prisoner swap that saw hundreds of Palestinian abductees released from Israel's notorious Ofer military prison and other prison facilities in the Negev Desert.
All 20 living Israeli captives were also released.
On Monday, forces of Hamas killed 32 members of "a gang" in Gaza City in a security campaign launched after a ceasefire came into effect on Friday, while six of its personnel were also killed in the combat, a Palestinian security source told Reuters.
The official said the security operation in Gaza City had targeted members of a "dangerous gang affiliated with a family in Gaza City". The operation had led to the arrest of 24 people and 30 others being wounded, the official said.
Israel-backed gangs kill Palestinian journalist
That operation came two days after Saleh Aljafarawi, a well-known Palestinian journalist, was killed in Gaza City, reportedly by pro-Israel gangs.
Various media reports suggested that Aljafarawi was killed when Hamas security forces surrounded members of an armed militia.
Aljafarawi was cornered by armed men and killed with seven gunshots to his body.
The New Arab reported that Aljafrawi was targeted and killed by Israel-backed armed collaborator gangs while documenting the extensive destruction in the Sabra neighbourhood following the withdrawal of Israeli troops.
The Quds News Network also reported that Israeli-backed gangs "executed" Palestinian journalist Aljafrawi in the Sabra neighbourhood of Gaza City.
The Gaza Government Media Office strongly condemned the assassination, calling it "a direct result of Israel's policy of targeting Palestinian journalists through both air strikes and proxy militias."
Since the ceasefire in Israel's two-year-long genocidal war came into effect, Gaza's interior ministry has deployed security forces in what it has described as an effort to prevent a security vacuum that would otherwise be filled by lawlessness and looting.
Earlier on Tuesday, Trump announced the start of "phase two" of his Gaza ceasefire agreement, following the release of hostages under the first stage of the deal brokered by Türkiye, the US, Qatar and Egypt.
Phase two of the deal calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza, the formation of a multinational force and the disarmament of Hamas.
Trump said he spoke to Hamas and the group will disarm.
