Release Israeli hostages now or there will be ‘hell to pay’, Donald Trump warns Hamas

US President-elect Donald Trump has demanded the immediate release of Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian militant Hamas group in the Gaza Strip (Evan Vucci/AP)

US President-elect Donald Trump has demanded the immediate release of Israeli hostages held by the Palestinian militant Hamas group in the Gaza Strip, saying on social media that if they are not freed before he takes office in January there will be “HELL TO PAY”.

It was not immediately clear whether he was threatening to directly involve the US military in Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza.