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LAST UPDATE | 6 Feb
US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump has repeated his plan for the United States to take over Gaza, after officials in his administration attempted to walk back elements of the controversial proposal.
His proposal that the US would take over the region and permanently resettle its Palestinian residents has been rejected and denounced by American allies and adversaries alike.
The United Nations and legal experts have said the plan is illegal under international law, with the UN chief warning Trump against ethnic cleansing.
Trump’s suggestion that Egypt and Jordan would take in displaced Palestinians has also been flatly rejected by both countries.
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris has described Trump’s comments as “concerning” and said any attempt to move people out of Gaza would contravene UN resolutions, while adding that Ireland continues to support “a two-state solution”.
Members of Trump’s administration yesterday suggested that the Republican leader meant that Palestinians would only be relocated temporarily out of Gaza instead of permanently resettled elsewhere in the Middle East.
However, writing on his Truth Social platform today, Trump doubled down on his initial proposal, saying that the Gaza Strip “would be turned over to the United States by Israel at the conclusion of fighting”.
He said that Palestinians “would have already been resettled in far safer and more beautiful communities, with new and modern homes, in the region.”
“They would actually have a chance to be happy, safe, and free. The U.S., working with great development teams from all over the World, would slowly and carefully begin the construction of what would become one of the greatest and most spectacular developments of its kind on Earth.”
He also said that no US soldiers would be needed to implement the plan, adding that it would bring “stability” to the region.
The US President later spoke at a National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, where he spoke about the ceasefire in Gaza but failed to mention his plans.
“Days before taking office, my team negotiated a breakthrough ceasefire agreement to stop the bloodshed and killing in the Middle East and return the hostages held captive by Hamas back home to their loved ones.”
He said he hoped that his greatest legacy would be to be “known as a peacemaker and a unifier”.
Members of Joe Biden’s administration, as well as mediators Qatar, also negotiated the current ceasefire deal.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was present during the White House press conference when Trump announced his controversial plan, has deemed it “a remarkable idea” and hailed Trump as Israel’s “greatest friend”.
“I think it should be really pursued, examined, pursued and done, because I think it will create a different future for everyone,” Netanyahu told Fox News yesterday.
Today, his defence minister Israel Katz announced that he had ordered the army to formulate a plan to “allow” Palestinians to leave Gaza.
“I have instructed the (army) to prepare a plan that would allow any Gaza resident who wishes to leave to do so, to any country willing to accept them,” he said. “The plan will include exit options through land crossings, as well as special arrangements for departure by sea and air.”
Katz praised Trump’s “bold plan, which could allow a large population in Gaza to leave for various places in the world” and said countries that have been critical of the war in Gaza, including Ireland, are “legally obligated” to take in Palestinians from the devastated territory.
Gaza’s borders have been occupied and tightly controlled by an Israeli blockade since 2007.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also said that countries denouncing Trump’s comments on Gaza should step forward and help the Palestinian territory.
“There are countries in the region who express a lot of concern,” Rubio told reporters in the Dominican Republic this evening. “We encourage them to step forward and provide a solution and answer to that problem.”
Elsewhere today, Egypt has said that Israeli support for Trump’s plan “weakens” ceasefire negotiations and “incites a return to fighting”.
The statement from truce mediator Egypt’s foreign ministry referred to “statements issued today by a number of members of the Israeli government”, without naming them.
Egypt said the plan “constitutes a blatant and flagrant violation of international law… and infringes on the most basic rights of the Palestinian people”.
“Any forcible transfer in or deportation of people from occupied territory is strictly prohibited,” said UN rights chief Volker Turk.
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