President Donald Trump is doubling down on his desire to take over the Gaza Strip — and he says Palestinians would not have a right to go back.
In an interview that is set to air Monday, Fox News’ Bret Baier asked the president about his proposal last week for the United States to take “ownership” of Gaza and whether Palestinians could go back.
“No, they wouldn’t, because they’re gonna have much better housing,” Trump said about the prospect of Palestinians returning. “In other words, I’m talking about building a permanent place for them. Because if they have to return now, it would be years before you could have — it’s not habitable.”
“I would own this,” Trump added. “Think of it as a real estate development for the future. It would be a beautiful piece of land.”
Trump last week said the United States would take over the enclave, “move the people out and then clean it up.”
“We’re gonna develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs,” Trump said.
“We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal,” he added. “And I don’t wanna be cute, I don’t wanna be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East.”
It’s not clear how the U.S. would undertake such a massive project — the rebuilding of the Gaza Strip would take billions of dollars and likely stretch beyond Trump’s time in office, given the massive amount of rubble that still needs to be cleaned up from the damage caused by Israeli airstrikes. And it’s not clear whether Trump wants to move all Palestinians out of Gaza — a proposal that critics liken to ethnic cleansing. Last week, Trump indicated he wants to move all Palestinians from Gaza and onto new land, but later in the same day he said he wants Palestinians to live in a redeveloped Gaza Strip along with “world’s people.”
Trump has also given conflicting messages about how involved the U.S. would be in Gaza. When he first floated a U.S. takeover, he said his proposal would include the deployment of American troops to create a “long-term ownership position” for the United States. But the White House later walked back talk of sending in American troops.
