By Solomon 
Trump suggested that the U.S. should “take over” the Gaza Strip and relocate the Palestinian population while it’s being rebuilt. He made the comments during a press conference at the White House on Tuesday, Feb. 4, alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump talked about wanting to create something “magnificent” after the Gaza Strip was devastated in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
This was Netanyahu’s first visit to the White House since Trump started his second term on Jan. 20. When asked if the U.S. presence in Gaza would be permanent, Trump hinted at it, saying he saw a “long-term ownership position,” according to NBC News. He mentioned the U.S. would be responsible for cleaning up unexploded bombs and other weapons, leveling the site, and rebuilding to provide plenty of jobs and housing for the locals. He described his vision as potentially creating the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
According to The Guardian, Trump also suggested relocating the 1.8 million Palestinians currently living in Gaza to nearby wealthy countries with “humanitarian hearts,” calling Gaza a “symbol of death and destruction.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas rejected Trump’s idea, with his office saying they strongly opposed any plan to seize the Gaza Strip and force Palestinians out of their homeland. A statement emphasized that “legitimate Palestinian rights are not negotiable,” and stressed that Gaza is an integral part of Palestine.
Rewaa Mohsen, a nurse from central Gaza, told the BBC that Trump couldn’t force them to leave. She said, “The Israeli army killed us, but we remain in our destroyed houses. We don’t need life outside our land, and we will not move one meter away from it. He can say whatever he wants – he can’t beat us.”
Trump’s comments sparked outrage among U.S. politicians too. Senator Chris Coons, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, was stunned, calling the idea insane and suggesting there’s no place on Earth less likely to welcome American troops. Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib, the first Palestinian American woman in Congress, tweeted that “Palestinians aren’t going anywhere.”