President Donald Trump has 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 toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Reuters reports.
Trump unveiled his surprise plan, without providing specifics, at a joint press conference yesterday with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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.
