U.S. President Donald Trump has called for Jordan, Egypt, and other Arab countries to increase their intake of Palestinian refugees from Gaza, according to The Guardian.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump, a close ally of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, stated, “You’re talking about maybe a million and a half people, and we just clean this whole thing up and say, ‘You know, it’s done.’”
Trump revealed he had spoken earlier in the day with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and planned to talk with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi on Sunday.
The Republican president praised Jordan for its integration of Palestinian refugees and urged the king to accept more, saying, “I would like you to take more because I’m looking at the whole Gaza Strip right now, and it’s a mess. It’s a real mess.”
For context, Jordan is already home to over 2.39 million registered Palestinian refugees, according to the United Nations.
Rehousing and Peace Efforts
Trump expressed concern over the devastation in Gaza, stating, “I don’t know, something has to happen, but it’s literally a ruin right now. Almost everything is destroyed, and people are dying there, so I prefer to engage with some Arab nations and build housing elsewhere where I think they can live in peace for a change.”
He suggested that the rehousing could be “temporary” or “long-term,” depending on circumstances.
Gaza has suffered extensive damage during a 15-month-long Israeli military campaign, with more than two-thirds of its buildings destroyed or damaged. The intense bombardment has led to a severe refugee crisis as large parts of the territory are now uninhabitable.
