US President Donald Trump said on Saturday (January 25) that he wants Jordan, Egypt and other Arab countries to accept more Palestinian refugees from the Gaza Strip.
Trump suggested moving enough of the population to “just clean up” the war-torn region, aiming to create what he described as a virtual clean slate.
Arab states, notably Jordan and Egypt, have long resisted such proposals, seeing mass displacement of Palestinians as a potential existential threat.
They have cited Israel’s reluctance to guarantee the return of Palestinians leaving the Gaza Strip and are wary of appearing complicit in their own deportations.
Many Palestinians are reluctant to leave for fear of not being allowed to return.
During the war, which began on October 7, 2023, more than 100,000 Palestinians managed to enter Egypt, often by paying exorbitant fees.
However, they received little assistance upon arrival, as Egypt refused to recognize them as refugees.
The Biden administration initially explored the idea of ​​temporarily relocating some Palestinians to protect them during the conflict.
However, the proposal was quickly abandoned due to strong opposition from Jordan and Egypt.
On Saturday, Trump brought back the idea of ​​mass Palestinian migration to neighboring countries, a move in line with his unorthodox approach to foreign policy.
As his administration tries to maintain a fragile Gaza ceasefire and reconstruction plan, more than two million people remain in the territory, devastated by 15 months of war.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump described Gaza as a “place of destruction” after the Israel-Hamas war.
He mentioned discussions on the issue with King Abdullah II of Jordan and expected further discussions with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
Trump shared that he told Abdullah, “I would love for you to do more because I’m looking at the whole Gaza Strip right now and it’s a mess, it’s a real mess. I want those people Take it.”
When asked if it was a temporary or long-term proposal, Trump said, “Either way.
“You’re talking about maybe a half million people, and we’re just cleaning this whole thing up. You know, there’s been many, many conflicts in this site over the centuries. And I don’t know, some. It has to happen,” Trump said. Israel Times Reported.
During his presidential campaign in October, Trump said war-torn Gaza could be “better than Monaco” if it was “rebuilt properly.”
“This is literally a place of demolition right now. Almost everything has been demolished and people are dying there,” Trump said on Saturday.
“So I want to join some Arab countries and build settlements in a different place where they can live in peace for a change,” he added.
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