US President Donald Trump reiterated on Thursday his desire to take control of the Gaza Strip, saying at a roundtable in Qatar that the US would “make it a zone of freedom.”
He added that there was nothing left to save in Palestinian territory.
Trump first mentioned the idea for Gaza in February, stating that the US would rebuild it and force Palestinians to relocate elsewhere.
His plan was widely condemned, with Palestinians, Arab countries, and the United Nations calling it ethnic cleansing.
Most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents are internally displaced due to the Israeli war, which has killed nearly 53,000 Palestinians and destroyed much of the enclave.
The conflict began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages.
Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by the US and the EU.
Speaking before officials and businessmen in Qatar, Trump said: “I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good: to make it a zone of freedom, you must allow the United States to get involved.”
He added he had seen aerial footage showing almost no buildings standing, with people living under rubble, which he called unacceptable.
“I want Gaza to become a zone of freedom. And if necessary, I would be proud for the US to take it and make it a zone of freedom,” he said.
Trump previously said he wants to turn Gaza into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
Palestinians strongly oppose any plan implying their removal from Gaza, comparing it to the 1948 Nakba (“catastrophe”), when hundreds of thousands were displaced during the war that led to Israel’s creation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described Trump’s idea as a “bold vision,” saying he and Trump discussed which countries might accept Palestinians leaving Gaza.
