White House considers cash rewards for Gazans aiding search for slain hostages


The U.S. is planning to offer rewards to Gazans who help locate the bodies of the deceased hostages who were held by Hamas, a pair of senior White House advisors told reporters Wednesday evening.

"We're probably going to put together some sort of program where we're going to ask people to see if they can help us to locate bodies. And we're going to pay rewards for that type of good behavior," one advisor said.

As part of the ceasefire agreement, all 20 living hostages have been returned to Israel, along with nine bodies of the deceased. Nineteen more bodies have yet to be located.

Hamas claims it does not know the location of the other bodies, and "significant efforts and special equipment" would be needed to locate them.

IDF SAYS BODY TURNED OVER BY HAMAS DOESN'T MATCH ANY HOSTAGES

An advisor tamped down accusations that Hamas had violated the ceasefire agreements, insisting the terms of the agreement prioritized living hostages, and they expected bodies to be difficult to locate in a war zone.

Still, they added, "I can tell you that we're not going to leave here until everybody comes home."

"We've heard a lot of people saying well, you know, Hamas violated the deal, because not all the bodies have been returned. I think the understanding we had with them was we'd get all the live hostages, out, which they did honor that."

EXCLUSIVE: ISRAELI AMBASSADOR SAYS NO PEACE IN GAZA UNLESS HAMAS HANDS OVER ALL 48 HOSTAGES, DISARMS

Israeli intelligence and Turkish retrieval experts, trained for Turkey’s frequent earthquakes, will aid the effort to locate the 19 remaining bodies.

"You have to understand the complexity of the conditions on the ground," an advisor said. "The entire Gaza Strip has been pulverized. It looks like something out of a movie. And there's very, very little buildings left standing."

The advisor equated the debris levels to those seen after the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center. "This is, I don't know, it feels like multiple times more."

Amid the debris are unexploded ordnance, further complicating body retrieval.

An advisor also detailed plans for "safe zones" behind the Yellow Line — the area still occupied by the Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza — for Palestinians looking to flee Hamas as the militant group conducts executions across the strip.

"Israel is very committed to creating safety for the people of Gaza who want to live in peace. And so this is a new line of effort that we requested. And that it was met with a lot of enthusiasm from Israel to try to set this up."

Violent clashes between Hamas and rival groups have been reported in areas across Gaza, and videos circulating across social media appear to show executions.

An advisor told reporters it had told Hamas to stop the killings.

"There have been a lot of reports in Gaza of Hamas killing and going after Palestinian civilians. That's something that we've been working with the mediators to send a message to say we'd really like to see that stop."

"We are seeing different actions on all sides that, obviously, that President Trump and his team are working very hard to minimize."

An Israeli military official told Fox News Digital the killings are "Hamas’s deliberate attempt to show the killing publicly and reestablish its rule by terrorizing civilians."

Trump earlier this week suggested Hamas was conducting police activities and those who were killed were gang members.

"[Hamas] do want to stop the problems and they've been open about it, and we gave them approval for a period of time," he told reporters on Monday.

"You have close to 2 million people going back to buildings that have been demolished, and a lot of bad things can happen. So we want it to be — we want it to be safe."

The president added on Tuesday: "They did take out a couple of gangs that were very bad gangs, very, very bad."

"And that didn't bother me much, to be honest with you," he added.

On Monday, Hamas returned all living hostages, showing a positive sign for the historic but tenuous ceasefire agreement with Israel. The IDF, in turn, pulled back in Gaza to behind what’s known as a "Yellow line," part of Phase One of the agreement.

Fox News' Efrat Lachter contributed to this report. 

Obama-appointed judge says she wants body cameras for federal agents amid Chicago anti-ICE clashes

A federal judge reportedly said she wants federal agents in the Chicago area to wear body cameras after a series of violent clashes with anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crowds.

U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis, who was appointed by former President Barack Obama, said images of the clashes on TV left her a "little startled" as the Trump administration continues its illegal immigration crackdown.

"The field director is going to explain to me why I am seeing images of tear gas being deployed and reading reports that there were no warnings given out in the field," Ellis said in court this week, according to The New York Times.

Last week, Ellis ordered ICE agents to wear badges and banned them from using certain riot control tactics against peaceful protesters and journalists. ICE agents have reportedly used tear gas and taken other measures as tensions between the immigration enforcement officers and the public escalate.

CHICAGO POLICE ORDERED NOT TO RESPOND AFTER CAR-RAMMING ATTACK ON FEDERAL AGENTS: SOURCES

"I’m getting images and seeing images on the news, in the paper, reading reports where I’m having concerns about my order being followed," Ellis said.

"I’m having concerns about my order being followed," the judge added this week, according to The Associated Press.

"I am adding that all agents who are operating in Operation Midway Blitz are to wear body-worn cameras, and they are to be on," Ellis said, referring to the government's name for the crackdown.

Justice Department attorney Sean Skedzielewski laid blame on "one-sided and selectively edited media reports," according to the AP. He also said it wouldn’t be possible to distribute cameras immediately.

"I understand that. I would not be expecting agents to wear body-worn cameras they do not have," Ellis said, adding that the details could be worked out later.

She said the field director of the enforcement effort must appear in court Monday.

The ICE facility in Broadview, Ill., a Chicago suburb, has been the site of several chaotic clashes between federal law enforcement and protesters.

Following a different federal judge's order, an eight-foot fence surrounding the facility was taken down Tuesday, FOX 32 Chicago. The fence was reportedly put up late last month and caused tension between federal and local officials. The Broadview Fire Department reportedly informed DHS that the fence was built without permission on a public street, which is under the village's jurisdiction, according to FOX 32.

Also on Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that two illegal immigrants were in custody after ramming their vehicle into a Border Patrol vehicle in Chicago during an immigration enforcement operation. This led to a clash with protesters.

The illegal immigrants were identified as Luis Gerardo Pirela-Ramirez and Yonder Enrique Tenefe-Perez, both of whom are from Venezuela. A senior DHS source told Fox News that the two rammed into a Border Patrol vehicle and attempted to flee the scene.

TRUMP OFFICIALS SLAM BLUE STATE GOVERNOR FOR IGNORING CHAOTIC ANTI-ICE ‘RIOTERS’ DISRUPTING OPERATION

"This morning, while conducting an immigration enforcement operation in Chicago, a vehicle, driven by an illegal alien rammed a Border Patrol vehicle and attempted to flee the scene," a DHS spokesperson said. "Border Patrol pursued the vehicle and was eventually able to stop it utilizing an authorized precision immobilization technique (PIT) maneuver. Once the vehicle was stopped, the suspects, who are both illegal aliens, attempted to flee on foot. As Border Patrol arrested the subjects and attempted to secure the scene, a crowd began to form and eventually turned hostile and eventually crowd control measures were used."

During the clash with protesters that followed the incident, federal officers deployed tear gas, exposing 13 Chicago police officers on the scene to the riot control agent.

Several Democrats, including Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, have pushed back on the Trump administration's immigration enforcement policies. President Donald Trump recently called for Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson to be arrested for failing to protect federal ICE agents.

"I will not back down. Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power. What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?" Pritzker said in reaction to Trump on Oct. 8. "We must all stand up and speak out."

Fox News Digital contacted Ellis' office, which acknowledged the judge's courtroom statements but noted an official order has not yet been issued regarding requiring federal agents to wear body cameras. 

The White House declined to comment, saying it would need the full order to do so.

DHS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Fox News' Bill Melugin, Fox News Digital's Landon Mion and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

About Us

Virtus (virtue, valor, excellence, courage, character, and worth)

Vincit (conquers, triumphs, and wins)