GAZA CITY (AFP) – Palestinian group Hamas lashed out yesterday at President Donald Trump’s shock proposal for the United States (US) to take over the Gaza Strip and resettle Palestinians in other countries, seemingly whether they want to leave or not.
Trump made his announcement to audible gasps during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom he was hosting at the White House for talks.
In a proposal that lacked details on how he would move out more than two million Palestinians or control Gaza, Trump said he would make the war-battered enclave “unbelievable” by removing unexploded bombs and rubble, and economically redeveloping it.
“The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it, too. We’ll own it,” Trump said.
He said there was support from the “highest leadership” in the Middle East and upped pressure on Egypt and Jordan to take the Gazans- despite both countries flatly rejecting the idea. Suggesting “long-term ownership” by the US, Trump said his idea would make it “the Riviera of the Middle East. This could be something that could be so magnificent”.
Hamas, which seized sole power of Gaza in 2007, rejected the proposal, branding it a “racist” idea aimed at “eliminating” the Palestinian cause.
“The American racist stance aligns with the Israeli extreme right’s position in displacing our people and eliminating our cause,” Hamas spokesman Abdel Latif al-Qanou said in a statement.
Much of Gaza was levelled in a 15-month war triggered by October 2023 attack, and Trump repeatedly claimed credit for sealing a ceasefire agreement that took effect last month.
Netanyahu, who has vowed to bring home hostages taken by Hamas and to crush its capabilities, said Trump’s plan could “change history” and was worth “paying attention to”.
Netanyahu was making the first visit by a foreign leader to the White House since Trump’s return to power, for what were billed as talks on securing a second phase of the truce.
But it quickly turned into the shock revelation of a proposal that would, if implemented, completely transform the face of the Middle East.
Trump, who also floated travelling to Gaza, appeared to suggest it would not be rebuilt for Palestinians.
“It should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people that have… lived there and died there and lived a miserable existence there,” he said.
The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations had pushed back strongly at Trump’s suggestions earlier on Tuesday – before his proposal the US take the territory over – for his people to be resettled.
“Our homeland is our homeland,” said Riyad Mansour.
Palestinians in Gaza have also denounced Trump’s resettlement idea.
“Trump thinks Gaza is a pile of garbage – absolutely not,” said 34-year-old resident of the southern city of Rafah Hatem Azzam.
For Palestinians, any attempts to force them out of Gaza would evoke dark memories of what the Arab world calls the Nakba, or catastrophe – the mass displacement of Palestinians during Israel’s creation in 1948. Trump was vague on the details of how he would execute the takeover plan, but hinted that it could require US boots on the ground in one of the most volatile places on earth “if necessary.”
Standing at a podium beside Trump, Netanyahu hailed Trump as Israel’s “greatest friend” and praised his “willingness to think outside the box”.
The two have had tense relations in the past, but Netanyahu has seized on the Republican’s return to power after his ties with former president Joe Biden became strained over the death toll in Gaza.
The Israeli premier would not rule out a return to hostilities with Hamas, or with its other foes in the region. “We will end the war by winning the war,” Netanyahu said, while vowing to secure the return of all hostages held by Hamas.
He did voice confidence that a deal with Saudi Arabia to normalise relations was “going to happen”. But after Trump aired his proposal, Saudi Arabia said it would not formalise ties with Israel unless a Palestinian state is established.
Trump’s Gaza proposal is set to face harsh opposition from Palestinians and Middle Eastern countries.
Egypt, Jordan and ceasefire mediator Qatar have all rejected Trump’s suggestion of moving Palestinians from Gaza.
The Gaza war began when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, taking 251 hostages.
