Right in front of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Trump stunned the world by declaring the U.S. would take over Gaza and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.” Netanyahu appeared somewhat stunned, but otherwise seemed to embrace that idea, an assumption that would officially be confirmed later on.
The statement has created dissenting voices on both the right and the left, including among Trump’s MAGA base. Trump has stated there will be no troops involved, as this will come after the war is over, but some remain skeptical. America will clean everything up and be able to set up an enterprise zone. Eventually, Israel would gain sovereignty over Gaza.
A conflict may be emerging between Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who seemed to suggest the Palestinians would eventually be able to return. They can return after Gaza is rebuilt, but until then, they’d need a place to stay. Trump doubled down on his assertion that the plan includes the Palestinians never returning. Another State Department statement suggested Trump was merely forcing the region to come up with their own solution, but again, Trump seemed to double down on his original statement.
In Joint Presser With Bibi, Trump Says US Will Turn Gaza Into ‘Riviera of the Middle East’– freebeacon.com
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President Donald Trump outlined ambitious plans to resettle Gaza’s population, “take over” the war-torn strip, clear out “unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site,” and spearhead “economic development.” A rebuilt Gaza, Trump said, could be “the Riviera of the Middle East.”
Trump’s remarks came during a Tuesday evening joint press conference with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who became the first foreign leader to visit the White House during Trump’s second term. Trump spoke at length about his call, first floated last week, to resettle Gaza’s residents. The strip, Trump said, “has been a symbol of death and destruction for decades” and “should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people who have … lived a miserable existence there.” Instead, he said, the United States “will take over the Gaza Strip” through “a long-term ownership position” and lead the rebuilding process.
.@KellyO on U.S. taking over Gaza strip: “Are you talking about a permanent occupation there? Redevelopment?”
President Trump: “I do see a long-term ownership position…” pic.twitter.com/AOvHSZZPFR
— CSPAN (@cspan) February 5, 2025
“It just can’t go back. If you go back, it’s going to end up the same way it has for 100 years,” Trump said of Gaza. “We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal, and I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East—this could be something that could be so magnificent.”
JUST IN: President Trump says the Gaza Strip will become the “Riviera of the Middle East” just minutes after saying the U.S. would “take over” the Strip.
“We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal.”
“I don’t wanna be cute. I don’t wanna be a wise guy, but… pic.twitter.com/zC1GIo7lfw
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) February 5, 2025
TRUMP’S GAZA GAMBIT TRIGGERS ANOTHER IMPEACHMENT FILING FROM DNC – Representative Al Green (D-TX) has filed his third set of impeachment articles against Donald Trump. This time, he filed the articles in response to his call for the Palestinians to be moved to a new land permanently. He called the reasons “dastardly deeds.”
He said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. and injustice in Gaza is a threat to justice in the United States of America. I rise to announce that the movement to impeach the president has begun. I rise to announce that I will bring articles of impeachment against the president for dastardly deeds proposed and dastardly deeds done.”
Live briefing: Israeli military to prepare ‘voluntary departure’ plan for Gazans, echoing Trump proposal– www.washingtonpost.com
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“I welcome President Trump’s bold plan, which could enable a large segment of Gaza’s population to relocate to various destinations around the world,” Katz said in a statement.
The Israeli plan would allow Gazaresidents to depart for “any country willing to receive them,” via land crossings or through “special arrangements for departure by sea and air,” he said. Palestinians in Gaza have mostly not been able to leave the enclave since the war began in October 2023, with some exceptions such as limited medical evacuations.
Rep. Al Green is filing new impeachment articles against Trump– www.politico.com
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Rep. Al Green said Wednesday he was introducing impeachment articles against Donald Trump after the president said the U.S. would “take over” Gaza.
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. and injustice in Gaza is a threat to justice in the United States of America,” Green said in a floor speech Wednesday morning. “I rise to announce that the movement to impeach the president has begun. I rise to announce that I will bring articles of impeachment against the president for dastardly deeds proposed and dastardly deeds done.”
The Texas Democrat launched multiple longshot impeachment bids during Trump’s first term using procedural maneuvers meant to circumvent House leadership and bypass committees. Similar to his last efforts, there’s not much appetite among Democrats to impeach Trump as of yet.
Asked Wednesday about Green’s measure, Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), the No. 3 House Democrat, said it wasn’t a focus for the caucus.
Rubio Says People Will Have To Relocate In “Interim” While Gaza Is Rebuilt– www.ndtv.com
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Marco Rubio was answering reporters’ question during a visit to the Dominican Republic on Thursday.
Santo Domingo: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday that Gaza currently is “not habitable” due to dangers such as unexploded weapons, and that people would have to live elsewhere while the area is rebuilt.
Rubio, answering a reporter’s question during a visit to the Dominican Republic, encouraged other countries to step forward and offer to help rebuild Gaza, but did not say whether Palestinians would be able to return to the area under a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump to take over and develop the Gaza Strip.
“I think that’s just a realistic reality, that in order to fix a place like that, people are going to have to live somewhere else in the interim,” Rubio said.
Trump repudiates Rubio’s attempt to repair Gaza foolishness– www.washingtonexaminer.com
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President Donald Trump has repudiated efforts by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt to row back his foolish comments on Gaza.
At a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday, Trump said he wanted to see Palestinians “permanently” relocated out of Gaza and the United States take a “long-term ownership interest” over the Gaza Strip. Refusing to rule out deploying U.S. military forces to secure control over the Palestinian territory, Trump further suggested that he might grant U.S. recognition of full Israeli sovereignty over the Palestinian West Bank.
Trump’s ambitions lack either political or historic justification. If actively pursued, they would greatly fuel both violent jihadist mobilization and moderate Muslim antagonism against the U.S. Trump’s plans would also require U.S. troops to engage in ground force combat operations against Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist organizations. Put simply, Trump’s Gaza proposal runs dangerously counter to U.S. interests while being utterly at odds with the president’s oft-stated pledge to avoid “stupid wars.”
Trump says no US soldiers needed in Gaza, US would take over after war – Reuters
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U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that Israel would turn the Gaza Strip over to the United States after the fighting ends and that no U.S. soldiers would be needed there.“The Gaza Strip would be turned over to the United States by Israel at the conclusion of fighting. The Palestinians … would have already been resettled in far safer and more beautiful communities, with new and modern homes, in the region,” Trump said in a Truth Social post building on his controversial comments about Gaza’s future this week.
US a ‘very long way away’ from deploying troops in Gaza – Defense Secretary — RT World News– www.rt.com
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Donald Trump’s Tuesday proposal to take over the enclave has sparked international scrutiny and criticism
US President Donald Trump is a long way off from deploying American soldiers to Gaza, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump proposed that the United States take control of the Gaza Strip, suggesting the area be redeveloped following the demolition of structures damaged during the 15-month Israel-Hamas conflict. He reiterated his earlier stance that Palestinians should be relocated to neighboring countries at those nations’ expense. When questioned about the potential deployment of US troops to facilitate this plan, Trump stated he would “do what is necessary.”
The following day, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared on Fox News to clarify the president’s remarks regarding the possibility of US military involvement in Gaza.
“I think we’re a very long way from that,” the top defense official replied, adding that “robust discussions” between Trump, national security officials and allies would have to precede such a decision. Israel wants to “finish the job against Hamas” and get the hostages back, and the US will help them do so, Hegseth said.
Trump’s Radical Plan to Take Over Gaza – PJ Media– pjmedia.com
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It was too much even for some die-hard Donald Trump supporters when he said Tuesday that the U.S. would “take over” and “own” the Gaza Strip, using American forces to clear out the weapons and unexploded ordinance. My colleague Robert Spencer reported all the gory details for you last night, so I won’t go over those again.
But you do need to see some of the reactions before we get to what’s really going on here.
Varad Mehta, a generally pro-Trump conservative, said that “the idea the US should play a predominant, let alone the leading role in said reconstruction and effectively colonize Gaza, is bonkers.”
Cynical Publius is one of my go-to guys for sharp conservative commentary, and even he admitted that “Trump is testing my limits on this one.” And while Publius “will follow my own advice for now” and give Trump the benefit of the doubt, he is “deeply concerned that we are introducing US troops into the Gaza quagmire, which goes against the ‘No more forever wars’ mantra we all got behind during the election.”
And Another Thing: “Forever wars” is a lazy accusation, in addition to being ahistorical bunk — but I still find myself using it sometimes and won’t criticize Publius for using it.
Congresscritter Rashida Tlaib (D-Caliphate), showing her usual restraint, said, “This president can only spew this fanatical bullshit because of bipartisan support in Congress for funding genocide and ethnic cleansing.” It also didn’t take long for anti-Israel protestors to show up at the White House last night, waving their Hamas flags.
Everybody, left and right, please take a deep breath and relax. Trump’s opening bid is almost never his play — and I think I have his play figured out.
Israel follows US lead, withdraws from UN Human Rights body citing ‘blatant anti-Semitism’ – What this means for Gaza? – Mint
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Israel has withdrawn from the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC), following a similar move by the United States. Israel’s UN envoy Danny Danon has said his country will “stand with” the US and “not participate” in the “biased” UN Human Rights Council a day after Trump also quit the Geneva-based body. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar published his letter to UNHRC President Jurg Lauber that says the decision to withdraw from the Geneva-based body “was reached in light of the ongoing and unrelenting institutional bias against Israel in the Human Rights Council, which has been persistent since its inception in 2006”.
Saudi Arabia says no Israel normalisation without Palestinian state – War on Gaza – War on Gaza Ahram Online
Germany Says Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem Belong to Palestinians Asharq Al-awsat – English
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