Trump repeats suggestion Palestinians should leave Gaza for Egypt and Jordan
By Guardian-Bethan McKernan/Patrick Wintour-Tue 28 Jan 2025
Donald Trump has repeated his suggestion that large numbers of Palestinians should leave Gaza for Egypt or Jordan, despite widespread opposition to the proposal from Palestinian leadership, the UN and US allies in the region. US president insists leaders of both countries would agree to move that could be ‘temporary or long-term’.
Speaking to reporters onboard Air Force One on Monday night, the US president was asked about his comments over the weekend about “cleaning out” the Gaza Strip either “temporarily or long-term”. Trump reiterated he would “like to get [Palestinians from Gaza] living in an area where they can live without disruption and revolution and violence so much”.
The remarks, apparently at odds with existing US policy and international law, have been widely rejected by the Arab world as a potentially fatal blow to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but were embraced by Israel’s right wing.
Trump also said he was due to meet his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, “soon”, amid speculation the longtime Israeli premier would be the first foreign leader to visit the White House during Trump’s second term.
“When you look at the Gaza Strip, it’s been hell for so many years,” Trump said on Monday.
“There have been various civilisations on that strip. It didn’t start here. It started thousands of years before, and there’s always been violence associated with it. You could get people living in areas that are a lot safer and maybe a lot better and maybe a lot more comfortable.”
Trump said he had spoken to the Egyptian president, Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, and Jordan’s King Abdullah on Sunday, and insisted that both leaders would agree to the plan. Abdullah also spoke on Monday with Trump’s secretary of state, Marco Rubio, but the issue was not mentioned in a state department statement on the call.
“I wish [Sisi] would take some. We helped them a lot, and I’m sure he’d help us. He’s a friend of mine. He’s in … a rough neighbourhood. But I think he would do it, and I think the king of Jordan would do it too,” Trump said.
Both Amman and Cairo have been adamant so far that Trump’s suggestion is a non-starter. Reports in the Egyptian media on Tuesday claimed Sisi had not spoken to Trump.
Donald Trump’s toxic remarks on Gaza reveal lack of joined-up thinking. (video)
For Palestinians, there is little faith in the idea of temporary relocation to allow for reconstruction, given a history of repeated displacements since the creation of Israel in 1948.
Fifteen months of war have levelled 70% of Gaza’s infrastructure and left the Palestinian territory’s 2.3 million population in the depths of a devastating humanitarian crisis. More than 47,000 people were killed before a ceasefire went into effect earlier this month, and about 90% of residents have been displaced from their homes, some multiple times. About 1,200 Israelis and foreigners were killed in Hamas’s 7 October 2023 attack that triggered the conflict, and another 250 taken hostage.
On Tuesday, a slower flow of people streamed back to northern Gaza after Israel the day before opened military checkpoints dividing the territory for more than a year. Between 200,000 and 300,000 people travelled to destroyed neighbourhoods in the north through the Netzarim Corridor on Monday, by foot or in cars that were screened by Egyptian contractors with the help of a US private security firm.
Mahmoud Kashko, who has been displaced to Mawasi in southern Gaza, said he had been swept up in the collective momentum on Tuesday. “I was hesitant to return to Gaza City, but when I saw hundreds of thousands of people coming back, I decided to return,” he told Agence France-Presse.
“I arrived at my home today. Of course, it’s destroyed like most people’s homes.”
Israeli media reported on Tuesday that mediators have begun preliminary work on the second stage of ceasefire negotiations, which is supposed to go into effect in early March. Israel is expected to completely withdraw from Gaza and Hamas is supposed to disarm during the crucial next phase of the deal, but many details remain unclear.
The Times of Israel on Tuesday quoted an anonymous security cabinet minister as saying that Trump’s statements on resettling Palestinians outside Gaza had most likely been “partially designed to help Netanyahu hang on to support from far-right allies who have destabilised his coalition” in protest against the hostage release and ceasefire deal.
At least 500 trucks of aid a day are now supposed to enter the besieged Palestinian territory, the minimum aid agencies say is needed, and up from an average of 72 a day in December.
Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, on Tuesday spoke on the UN relief and works agency for Palestine refugees (Unrwa), ahead of a deadline this week for Israel cooperation with it.
He told reporters Israel will cease all contact with Unrwa and any body acting on its behalf, and forbid it from “operating within the sovereign territory of the state of Israel”. He said Israel would not prevent Unrwa from operating in Gaza but he expected other UN agencies to gradually take over responsibility for the distribution of aid in the territory.
Aid agencies have expressed deep concern over the Unrwa ban’s impact on relief efforts, which rely on the agency’s staff, facilities and logistical capabilities. Another 900,000 Palestinians in the West Bank rely on the organisation for basic services, which the semi-autonomous Palestinian Authority does not have the capacity to take over, leading to fears it could collapse altogether.
Philippe Lazzarini, Unrwa’s commissioner general, told the security council on Tuesday that the agency was the subject of a “fierce and absurd” disinformation campaign designed to “strip Palestinians of refugee status and to deny their right to self determination.
“If the UN allowed Unrwa to implode, the repercussions will not be confined to national borders and will only further destabilise the region,” he said.
Decades of friction between Israel and Unrwa came to a head in the aftermath of 7 October, in which Israel alleged 12 Unrwa employees took part. The agency fired several staff members as a result of an independent inquiry.
ISRAEL'S POLICIES, PARTICULARLY REGARDING BORDERS, LAND OCCUPATION, AND HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS. i.e. A MILITARY STATE.
By AI-ChatGPT4o-T.Chr.-Human Synthesis- 30 January 2025
These issues have been widely debated in international forums, including the United Nations (UN), International Criminal Court (ICC), and various human rights organizations.
1. Lack of Fixed Borders & Land Expansion
Unlike most nations, Israel has no officially recognized, permanent borders.
The 1967 Six-Day War resulted in Israel occupying:
The West Bank (including East Jerusalem)
Gaza Strip (withdrawn in 2005, but still under blockade)
The Golan Heights (taken from Syria)
Israel continues to expand settlements in the West Bank, despite UN resolutions declaring them illegal under international law.
2. Jewish-Only State?
Israel defines itself as a Jewish state, which raises concerns about ethnic and religious exclusivity.
The Nation-State Law (2018):
Declares Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people.
Downgrades Arabic from an official language.
Prioritizes Jewish settlement expansion.
Palestinians in Israel (20% of the population) face systemic discrimination, including in housing, education, and employment.
3. Violations of International Law
Illegal Settlements: The UN, ICC, and International Court of Justice (ICJ) have ruled Israeli settlements in the West Bank as violating international law.
Occupation & Apartheid Claims: Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the UN have accused Israel of practicing apartheid through its treatment of Palestinians.
Military Actions in Gaza: Frequent Israeli military operations have caused massive civilian casualties. The use of collective punishment (blockades, bombings) violates the Geneva Conventions.
4. Human Rights Concerns
Gaza Blockade: 2.3 million Palestinians live under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade, facing extreme poverty and restricted movement.
Arbitrary Arrests: Thousands of Palestinians are held in administrative detention without trial.
House Demolitions: Palestinian homes are regularly destroyed for lacking Israeli permits, while Jewish settlements expand.
Killings of Journalists: Cases like the killing of Shireen Abu Akleh (Al Jazeera reporter) by Israeli forces raise press freedom concerns.
5. International Reaction
UN Resolutions: The UN General Assembly has passed over 200 resolutions condemning Israeli actions.
US & Western Support: Despite criticisms, Israel receives billions in military aid from the US and European allies.
ICC Investigations: The International Criminal Court is investigating Israel for potential war crimes in Palestinian territories.
Boycotts & Sanctions: Some groups call for BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) against Israeli companies linked to occupation.
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Conclusion
Israel operates outside many international laws, especially concerning borders, human rights, and military occupation. However, powerful allies like the US shield it from serious consequences. And WHY?
Editors remarks
Trump must be making an error of speach mistaking Palestine from Israel. It is clearly all the Israelis who must be returned to the various European countries they originally came from, letting the Palestinians return to their own country.
After WWII, a group of jewish survivors from the Holocaust was moved into Palestine by the allied forces against the agreement of Palestine, given a small temporary shelter territory which they now illegally have expanded and now wish to grab all. Since when have ANY religion been given their OWN country? All seemingly at Trumps full agreement? This is not the old Trump I knew.
