Trump says US will ‘take over and own Gaza’ – sending troops into territory ‘if necessary’ to turn it into ‘Middle East Riviera’

Donald Trump has said that the US will “take over” the Gaza strip and send troops into the territory if deemed “necessary”.

Hosting a joint press conference with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the American President said that “the US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too,” stating that he is prepared to use troops “if necessary”.

“We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site … level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings,” he told reporters at the White House.

The President added that all Palestinians in the area should “be resettled”.

Trump has previously said that neighbouring nations such as Egypt and Jordan could take in the 2.2million population – a proposal that has been rejected.

However, Trump now said that “everybody loves the idea” and that the US would make the area “the Riviera of the Middle East”.

He added that the US would “create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area”.

When asked who he envisions living in Gaza, Trump responded: “People living there. The world’s people,” adding it would include Palestinians.

The move would fuel outrage across the Arab world, drawing parallels to the 1948 displacement of Palestinians.

Thousands were forced out of their home or forced to flee due to fighting. It is a period referred to by Palestinians as the Nakba, or catastrophe.

The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations said that people should respect Palestinians’ desire to remain in Gaza, whilst the Saudi government has released a statement where it rejected the proposal.

The US’s proposed “takeover” could also anger the US’s allies in the West, who are in favour of a two-state solution to the conflict in the Middle East.

More to follow…