US President Donald Trump has hinted to ethnically cleanse Gaza from Palestinians when he said on Saturday that Jordan and Egypt should take more people from Gaza, where Israel’s military assault has caused a dire humanitarian situation and killed tens of thousands.
When asked if this was a temporary or long-term suggestion, Trump said: “Could be either.”
Washington had said last year it opposed the forcible displacement of Palestinians.
“I said to him I’d love you to take on more because I’m looking at the whole Gaza strip right now and it’s a mess, it’s a real mess. I’d like him to take people,” Trump, who took office on Jan. 20, said about his call on Saturday with Jordan’s King Abdullah.
“I’d like Egypt to take people,” Trump told reporters, adding he would speak to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday.
“You’re talking about a million and half people, and we just clean out that whole thing,” Trump said. The population in the Palestinian enclave prior to the start of the Israel-Gaza war was around 2.3 million.
“It’s literally a demolition site, almost everything is demolished and people are dying there, so I’d rather get involved with some of the Arab nations and build housing at a different location where they can maybe live in peace for a change,” Trump said.
Israel’s military assault on Gaza has killed more than 47,000 people, according to the Gaza health ministry, and led to accusations of genocide and war crimes that Israel denies.
