WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Palestinians would have no right of return to Gaza under his US take-over plan, describing his proposal in excerpts of an interview released on Monday as a “real estate de-velopment for the future.”
Trump told media that “I would own it” and that there could be as many as six different sites for Pales-tinians to live outside Gaza under the plan, which the Arab world and others in the international com-munity have rejected.
“No, they wouldn’t, because they’re going to have much better housing,” Trump said when Baier asked if the Palestinians would have the right to return to the enclave, most of which has been re-duced to rubble by Israel’s military since October, 2023.
“In other words, I’m talking about building a permanent place for them because if they have to return now, it’ll be years before you could ever – it’s not habitable.”
Trump first revealed the shock Gaza plan during a joint news conference with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, drawing outrage from Palestinians.
The US president pressed his case for Palestinians to be moved out of Gaza, devastated by the Israel-Hamas war, and for Egypt and Jordan to take them.
In the Fox interview – which will be broadcast Monday after the first half was screened a day earlier – Trump said he would build “beautiful communities” for the more than two million Palestinians who live in Gaza.
“Could be five, six, could be two. But we’ll build safe communities, a little bit away from where they are, where all of this danger is,” added Trump.
“In the meantime, I would own this. Think of it as a real estate development for the future. It would be a beautiful piece of land. No big money spent.” –Agencies
