First United States President Donald Trump mused on his January 20 inauguration day about the Gaza Strip being a “phenomenal location”, where “beautiful things could be done”. Then came an almost off-the-cuff suggestion on January 26 where he told reporters on Air Force One that Palestinians should be moved to Egypt and Jordan to “just clean out” the enclave.The question of whether this was a serious suggestion, and whether any displacement of Palestinians would be temporary or permanent was unclear, as Trump continued to make occasional comments on the topic.
But then, on Tuesday, appearing with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House – in the first official visit by a foreign leader since the new president’s inauguration – Trump dropped a bombshell, declaring that the US would “take over” and “own” Gaza, hoping that Palestinians there would “go to other countries” in what would essentially amount to ethnic cleansing.
On Wednesday, his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said that Trump had not committed to US troops on the ground in Gaza, and that the people living there would be “temporarily relocated”, while providing few other details about a plan that has been widely rejected by Palestinians, Arab states – including Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia – and many countries internationally. Advertisement
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