Trump: ‘The U.S. Will Take Over the Gaza Strip … We Will Own It’
Donald Trump says he wants the United States to take “ownership” of the Gaza Strip and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
The president’s comments came on Tuesday as he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose bombardment of the region in response to Hamas’ Oct. 2023 terrorist attack on Israel killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. Trump and Netanyahu have long been allies, and Trump voiced support for Israel’s relentless attacks against Gaza during his presidential campaign. Former President Joe Biden waffled publicly, but his administration never stopped supplying Israel with military aid it needed to level Gaza. Trump’s new approach to the conflict seemed to surprised even Netanyahu.
“The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip,” Trump said during a press conference. “We’ll do a job with it, too. We’ll own it.”
He added that the U.S. will “level the site” and “get rid of all the destroyed buildings.”
Trump said earlier in the day that the Palestinians in Gaza should be relocated to other areas, but he was vague on specifics. “The Gaza thing has not worked,” he told reporters in the Oval Office. “They should get a good fresh, beautiful piece of land and we get some people to put up the money to build it and make it nice and make it habitable and enjoyable.” He added that the U.S. could help Palestinians find “numerous pieces of land” somewhere other than Gaza and “build them some really nice places.”
He took this vision to another level while speaking alongside Netanyahu after their meeting, declaring that he sees the U.S. taking a “long-term ownership position” over Gaza and developing it. When asked who he envisions living in Gaza, Trump said “world people.”
“We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal,” Trump said. “I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East. This could be something that could be so magnificent.”
Trump asked Netanyahu to speak after he laid out his plan for the U.S. to take over Gaza. “I mentioned our three goals, and our third goal is to make sure that Gaza never poses a threat to Israel again,” Netanyahu said. “President Trump is taking it to a much higher level.”
Trump has barely been president for two weeks and he has already teased taking control of Greenland, Panama, Canada, and now one of the most volatile pieces of land in the Middle East. “We’ll make sure that it’s done world class,” the president said.
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