U.S. President Donald Trump has unveiled a controversial plan to assume control of the Gaza Strip after forcibly relocating Palestinians from the besieged enclave—a proposal that many fear amounts to ethnic cleansing.
Speaking at a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, Trump suggested that Palestinians would “love to leave” Gaza, envisioning long-term U.S. control during a massive reconstruction effort aimed at transforming the territory into the “Riviera of the Middle East” with promised jobs and economic prosperity.
Trump’s remarks have provoked sharp responses both in the United States and around the world. Here are some of the key reactions:
Hamas
- Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri condemned the plan as “an expulsion from their land,” calling Trump’s suggestion “ridiculous and absurd” and warning that such ideas could ignite regional chaos.
- Another senior official, Izzat el-Reshiq, warned that the proposal “will only put oil on fire,” highlighting what he described as a deep ignorance about Palestine and reaffirming that Gaza is not a commodity to be bought or sold.
Palestinian Authority
- President Mahmoud Abbas strongly rejected any plans to displace Palestinians from Gaza. “We will not allow any infringement of our people’s rights,” he declared, insisting that peace and stability can only be achieved by establishing a Palestinian state—with Jerusalem as its capital—on the borders of 1967.
Palestine’s UN Envoy
- Riyad Mansour, leader of the Palestinian delegation to the United Nations, argued that people in Gaza should be allowed to return to their original homes in what is now Israel. “The Palestinian people want to rebuild Gaza because this is where we belong,” he said.
Israel
- Former Israeli national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir endorsed the idea of encouraging Gazans to leave the enclave as a post-war strategy, urging Prime Minister Netanyahu to implement such a policy immediately.
Egypt
- Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty emphasized the importance of initiating recovery projects in Gaza without forcing Palestinians to leave the territory, underscoring a commitment to rebuild rather than displace.
Saudi Arabia
- Saudi officials stated that they would not normalize ties with Israel without the creation of a Palestinian state. The kingdom reiterated its unequivocal rejection of any attempt to displace Palestinians, whether through settlement policies, annexation, or forced relocation.
Jordan
- The Royal Court noted that His Majesty King Abdullah II has stressed the need to halt settlement expansion and firmly rejected any plans that would annex land or displace the Palestinian people.
Iran
- A senior Iranian official made it clear that Iran opposes any displacement of Palestinians, a position communicated through various channels.
United States
- U.S. Senator Chris Murphy denounced the proposal as “totally lost it,” warning that a U.S. invasion of Gaza could lead to catastrophic losses and prolonged conflict.
- Senator Chris Van Hollen described Trump’s proposal as “ethnic cleansing by another name,” asserting that it undermines decades of bipartisan support for a two-state solution and would embolden adversaries like Iran.
- Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, a prominent Palestinian-American voice, asserted that “Palestinians aren’t going anywhere,” criticizing what she sees as bipartisan complicity in funding policies that enable genocide and ethnic cleansing.
