Thursday, February 13, 2025

February 5, 2025

Now Trump Is Saying The US Should Take Over War-Torn Gaza And Create ‘Riviera Of The Middle East’

Earlier that same day, Trump had floated the idea of permanently resettling Palestinians from Gaza to neighbouring countries, describing the territory, where a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was underway, as a "demolition site."

[Image: Flickr]

Donald Trump announced that the US would take control of the war-torn Gaza Strip and focus on its economic development after relocating Palestinians elsewhere — a dramatic break from long-standing American policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

He shared the unexpected plan during a joint press conference on Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu but didn’t offer many details.

Earlier that same day, Trump had floated the idea of permanently resettling Palestinians from Gaza to neighbouring countries, describing the territory, where a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was underway, as a “demolition site.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by CNN (@cnn)

The proposal is likely to face strong pushback from both allies and opponents since a direct US role in Gaza contradicts Washington’s long-held stance. Traditionally, Gaza has been seen as part of a future Palestinian state alongside the occupied West Bank.

“The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too,” Trump told reporters (per Reuters). “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site. If it’s necessary, we’ll do that.

“We’re going to take over that piece, we’re going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it’ll be something the entire Middle East can be very proud of,” he continued.

“I do see a long-term ownership position and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East,” he said, adding he had spoken to regional leaders and they supported the idea.

When asked who would live in Gaza under the plan, Trump suggested it could become a home for “the world’s people,” pitching the area as a potential “Riviera of the Middle East.” This optimistic vision stands in sharp contrast to the devastation left by Israel’s military response to Hamas’ October 7, 2023, cross-border attack.

Trump didn’t directly address questions about how or under what authority the US could take control of Gaza, which is home to around two million people and has a long, violent history of territorial disputes. Historically, US administrations, including Trump’s first term, avoided deploying American troops there.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, referred to casually by Trump as “Bibi,” was cautious in his comments, avoiding detailed discussions about the proposal. However, he commended Trump for “thinking outside the box with fresh ideas” and “being willing to puncture conventional thinking” after years of fierce conflict between the Israeli military and Hamas militants in Gaza.

Trump described the Gaza Strip as a longtime “symbol of death and destruction” and said Palestinians there should be housed in “various domains” in other countries, calling on Jordan, Egypt and other Arab states to take in Gazans, saying Palestinians there had no alternative but to leave their homes and heritage behind (even though these countries have rejected the idea).

Forcibly displacing Gaza’s population would almost certainly violate international law and face fierce opposition both in the region and from Washington’s Western allies. Some human rights advocates have even compared the idea to ethnic cleansing.

The US president, who had a career in developing real estate before getting into politics, is infamous for making over-the-top foreign policy pronouncements, many of which he never actually implements – probably because he is exclusively made of hot air.

His Gaza proposal came after a frenetic first two weeks in office in which Trump has talked about a US takeover of Greenland, warned of the possible seizure of the Panama Canal and declared Canada should be the 51st US state.

Trump’s expansionist rhetoric echoing old-style imperialism is a bit panic-making – which some say, is exactly the tactic he’s going for.

[Source: Reuters]