Canberra : US President Donald Trump has threatened to give Israel the freedom to “finish the job” against Hamas if the militant group rejects his 20-point peace plan for Gaza, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed as a step towards ending the war.

Declaring he would bring “eternal peace in the Middle East”, Trump stood in the White House alongside Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu proposing an immediate stop to the fighting in exchange for the release of hostages within 72 hours, before Trump and former British prime minister Tony Blair would oversee a temporary governing body for Gaza.

Hamas leaders said they learnt about the plan only after Trump made it public, but would review it “in good faith” before responding. They now face a bitter trade-off in deciding whether to d

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