President Trump on Thursday insisted Jordan and Egypt will take in Palestinian refugees from Gaza despite fierce objections from the two Arab nations.
Trump’s recent suggestion to “clean out” Gaza of its Palestinian population and send them to Jordan and Egypt raised fears that the US may support the ethnic cleansing of the territory, but his idea was met with quick rejection from Amman and Cairo and the wider Arab world.
When asked on Thursday about the Egyptian and Jordanian response to his proposal, Trump said, “They will do it. They will do it. They’re gonna do it, okay? We do a lot for them, and they’re gonna do it.”
Trump’s calls to remove Palestinians from Gaza were welcomed by the more hardline elements of the Israeli government who are openly in favor of ethnic cleansing and the establishment, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said he’s working to make Trump’s vision a reality.
Smotrich and others frame their desire for ethnic cleansing as “voluntary migration,” but the Israeli military campaign has left most of Gaza uninhabitable. Some media reports have said the Trump administration is discussing the idea of “temporarily” relocating Gaza residents during reconstruction, but many would likely be hesitant to leave over fears Israel wouldn’t let them back.
Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said Thursday that there’s “almost nothing left” of Gaza, comments he made after visiting the Israeli-controlled Netzarim Corridor and observing the destruction from a helicopter.
“People are moving north to get back to their homes and see what happened and turn around and leave … there is no water and no electricity. It is stunning just how much damage occurred there,” Witkoff told Axios.
Witkoff, a real estate investor from New York, said he thinks the reconstruction of Gaza will take 10 to 15 years. “There has been this perception we can get to a solid plan for Gaza in five years. But its impossible. This is a 10 to 15-year rebuilding plan,” he said.
Witkoff added that the demolition and removal of the rubble alone would take five years. “There is nothing left standing. Many unexploded ordnances. It is not safe to walk there. It is very dangerous. I wouldn’t have known this without going there and inspecting,” he said.
