WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said the US would take over the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and develop it economically after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere, moves that would shatter decades of US policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Trump unveiled his surprise plan, without providing specifics, at a joint press conference on Tuesday with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The announcement followed Trump’s shock proposal earlier on Tuesday for the permanent resettlement of Palestinians from Gaza to neighboring countries, calling the enclave – where the first phase of a fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire is in effect – a “demolition site”.
Trump can expect allies and foes alike to strongly oppose any US takeover of Gaza. The US taking a direct stake there would run counter to longtime policy in Washington and for much of the international community, which has held that Gaza would be part of a future Palestinian state that includes the occupied West Bank.
“The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too,” Trump told reporters. “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”
“If it’s necessary, we’ll do that, we’re going to take over that piece, we’re going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it’ll be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of,” Trump added.
“I do see a long-term ownership position and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East,” he said, adding that he had spoken to regional leaders and they supported the idea.
Asked who would live there, Trump said it could become a home to “the world’s people”.