Rabat – In a strange turn of events in what seems to be a retreat of his previous plan, US President Donald Trump said yesterday that no Palestinians will be chased out of war-torn Gaza.
Trump made the statement in response to a reporter’s question during a press briefing with Ireland’s Prime Minister Michael Martin in the Oval Office.
Asked about his plans “to expel Palestinians out of Gaza,” Trump backtracked saying, “Nobody’s expelling any Palestinians.”
The US president’s comments come following Israel’s intention to set a new “emigration authority” office under their defense ministry to manage the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.
Converging media reports said Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich announced the plan on Sunday, noting it has the Trump administration’s support.
He further commented on the forcible displacement of Gazans saying: “Various officials in the administration told me again and again, ‘We will not allow 2 million Nazis [referring to the Palestinian people] to live just beyond the fence.’”
One time will tell whether Trump’s backtrack was just to save face for the press, or if he is changing his prior stance.
Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem welcomed Trump’s apparent retreat on the Gazans’ displacement call, urging him to refrain from aligning with the vision of the “extreme Zionist right.”
The statements come as US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff met with Foreign Ministers of Arab states in Qatar to learn about the Egypt-led reconstruction plan in Gaza.
Witkoff met with representatives from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and the Palestine Liberation Organization in Doha.
Read also: A New Colonizer in Gaza? Trump Makes Controversial Plan to ‘Take Over’ Palestinian Enclave
Presenting the plan, they urged for the “importance of establishing a ceasefire in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories,” according to a statement from the Qatari Foreign Ministry.
Arab state representatives also argued for “the need for genuine efforts to achieve a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution, ensuring the fulfillment of the Palestinian people’s aspirations for freedom and independence.”
The Arab-led Gaza reconstruction plan came to counter Trump’s controversial proposal to “take over” Gaza and forcibly displace its citizens, which he announced in early February.
The newfound plan consists of three phases, namely interim measures, reconstruction, and governance.
