Trump Says He’s ‘Committed to Buying and Owning Gaza’

A new poll shows only 13% of Americans think Trump's proposal to take over Gaza is a 'good idea'

On Sunday, President Trump continued to push his idea for a US takeover of the Gaza Strip, saying he was “committed” to owning the Palestinian territory.

“I’m committed to buying and owning Gaza. As far as us rebuilding it, we may give it to other states in the Middle East to build sections of it,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.

The president said it would be a “big mistake” to allow Palestinians to return to Gaza once they’re removed despite the White House previously walking back his call for the “permanent” expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza, which means ethnic cleansing would be required for his plan.

“It’s a big mistake to allow the Palestinians or the people to be living in Gaza to go back yet another time. We don’t want Hamas going back, think of it as a big real estate site,” Trump said.

He again called Gaza a “demolition site” and said the “remainder will be demolished. You can’t live in those buildings right now. We’ll make into a good site for future development by … somebody.”

Trump also claimed that the “only reason they’re talking about returning to Gaza is because they don’t have an alternative. When they have one, they won’t want to return.”

The president has continued to double down on his plan to take over Gaza despite strong opposition from regional Arab states and the Palestinians who live there. Trump said he planned to meet with “all” Arab leaders and will be hosting Jordan’s King Abdullah in Washington this Tuesday.

A new poll from CBS News/YouGov found there is very little support among Americans for Trump’s plan to take Gaza. The poll found only 13% of respondents thought it was a “good idea,” while 47% thought it was a “bad idea,” and 40% said they were “unsure” or that it “depends.”

When Trump first announced his plan last week, the assumption was that taking over Gaza would require US troops to be deployed, and the president didn’t rule it out. After some backlash, the president later claimed that under his plan, Israel would hand Gaza to the US after the “conclusion of the fighting,” a sign that Trump expects Israel’s genocidal war to be restarted.

On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Trump “never said he wants American troops to do the job. Guess what? We’ll do the job.”

Trump also signaled Israel could restart its bombing campaign in Gaza in his remarks to reporters on Air Force One. The president said the three Israeli hostages released by Hamas on Saturday looked like “holocaust survivors.”

“I don’t know how much longer we can take that when I watch that. I know we have a deal where they’re supposed to dribble in and keep dribble in, but they are in really bad shape. Even the ones that came out early were in a bit better shape, but mentally they were treated so badly. Who could take that? At some point we’re gonna lose our patience,” he said.

Many Palestinians freed from Israeli prisons under the ceasefire deal have also shown signs of starvation and torture. Israeli troops have also continued to violate the ceasefire in Gaza, killing four Palestinians on Sunday alone.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.