The first two weeks of the new United States government have been exhausting, with news, threats, trade wars, and provocative statements every day, but what happened on Tuesday night at the White House exceeded all norms and surprised everyone when the president Donald Trump announced that “the United States will take control of the Gaza Strip” and that “we’ll own it”.
As if that were not enough, Trump once again insisted that he wants to remove approximately 1.8 million Palestinians from Gaza who consider that land their home.
Trump presented his idea, which was not improvised as he was reading, in a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which took place after a meeting where both leaders also discussed the fragile ceasefire in Gaza with Hamas.
This statement adds to others by Trump where he has spoken about annexing Canada, taking control of the Danish territory of Greenland, and "recovering" the Panama Canal.
Why does Trump want to take control of Gaza?
Trump's provocative proposal seems destined to stir up the next stage of negotiations between Israel and Hamas, which aims to extend the ceasefire in the region and secure the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza.
"I don't think people should go back," said Trump. "You can't live in Gaza right now. I think we need another place. I think it should be a place that makes people happy."
The President of the United States said, “The United States will take control of the Gaza Strip and we will do a good job,” and then added: “We’ll own it and we will be responsible for dismantling all the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, leveling the ground, getting rid of the destroyed buildings, clearing the area, and creating an economic development that will provide an unlimited amount of jobs and housing for the people in the area.”
Like someone talking about a new real estate project on an empty lot, Trump stated that the United States would rebuild the Gaza Strip after relocating Palestinians elsewhere, turning the territory into the “Middle East Riviera”, where “people from around the world”, including Palestinians, could live.
Egypt, Jordan, and other US allies in the Middle East have warned Trump that relocating Palestinians from Gaza would threaten the stability of the region, increase the risk of conflict escalation, and undermine decades of efforts by the United States and its allies for a two-state solution.
Nevertheless, Trump insists that the Palestinians "have no alternative" but to abandon the "great pile of rubble" that Gaza has become. He spoke while his top advisers emphasized that the three to five-year reconstruction plan for the war-torn territory, established in a temporary ceasefire agreement, is not viable.
Last week, both Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Jordanian King Abdullah II rejected Trump's proposals to resettle the inhabitants of Gaza.
But Trump said he believes that Egypt and Jordan, as well as other countries he did not name, will eventually accept hosting displaced Palestinians.
"If we can find a beautiful area to resettle people, permanently, in nice houses where they can be happy and not be shot, not be killed and not be stabbed to death, as is happening in Gaza," said Trump.
The president also said that he does not rule out the deployment of US troops to support the reconstruction of Gaza. "We will do whatever is necessary," Trump said about the possibility of sending the military to fill any security gaps.
Trump also hinted that he might be reconsidering the idea of an independent Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution for the conflict in the Middle East. "Well, many plans change over time," said the President of the United States.
What did Netanyahu say in response to Trump's proposal?
In the same press conference, the Prime Minister of Israel showed his full support for the idea of the President of the United States.
Benjamin Netanyahu said that one of the objectives of the war was for Gaza not to pose a threat to Israel again. “President Trump is taking it to a much higher level. He sees a different future for that piece of land that has been the focus of such much terrorism, so many attacks against us,” said the Israeli Prime Minister.
“I think it’s worth paying attention to this,” Netanyahu continued. “I think it’s something that could change history, and it’s worthwhile really pursuing this avenue.”
Netanyahu's visit is the first official one that Trump has received since he began his second presidency on January 20th.