A hostage deal in the Middle East might come in the final hours of President Joe Biden's administration because actors in the Middle East are "terrified" of what President-elect Donald Trump's "consequences" might be, according to Vice President-elect JD Vance.
"If you talk to world leaders, it's very clear that President Trump threatening Hamas and making it clear that there is going to be 'hell to pay' is part of the reason we made progress on getting some of the hostages out," Vance said in a TV interview Sunday.
"We're hopeful there's going to be a deal that's struck toward the very end of Biden's administration, maybe the last day or two."
Ultimately, Hamas terrorist and others in the Middle East working to secure peace and prosperity are "terrified" of what Trump's consequences might be if they do not comply to his directive to return all the hostages before his Jan. 20 inauguration.
"But regardless of when that deal is struck, it will be because people are terrified that there are going to be consequences for Hamas," Vance continued.
"Now, what does that look like? I think, No. 1, it means enabling the Israelis to knock out the final couple of battalions of Hamas and their leadership. It means very aggressive sanctions and financial penalties on those who are supporting terrorist organizations in the Middle East.
"It means actually doing the job of American leadership, which Donald Trump did very well for four years and he's going to do very well for the next four years."
Middle East envoy "Steve Witkoff is a great guy; he's doing a great job over there," Vance said, just days after Trump delivered his biggest backing of Witkoff's work to negotiate the long overdue return of American and Israeli hostages from the Hamas terrorist clutches in Gaza, if not elsewhere in the Middle East.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.