President Donald Trump Says U.S. Will "Take Over and Own" Gaza Strip; Announces Plans for Redevelopment and Rehabilitation

US President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that the United States would “take over and own” the Gaza Strip, vowing to manage the region and address the dangers posed by unexploded bombs and other weapons. Speaking at a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump emphasized that the U.S. would not only clear the area of dangerous remnants but would also focus on rebuilding and economically developing the region after the destruction.

"The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too. We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site,” said Trump.

The two leaders discussed strategies for eliminating Hamas and working toward restoring peace in the Middle East. Trump also criticised his predecessor, Joe Biden, accusing the previous administration of neglecting the Middle East for four years. “Nobody did anything for four years except demonstrate incompetence," Trump remarked during the press conference.

The US President further addressed the issue of Palestinian displacement, suggesting that Egypt and Jordan would eventually accept Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, despite their initial objections. “They say they’re not going to accept — I say they will,” Trump asserted. According to Bloomberg, Trump dismissed the objections of both countries, insisting they would take in Palestinians from the war-torn region.

In his first meeting with a foreign leader since returning to office, Trump also hinted at a shift in his approach to the Israel-Palestine conflict. When asked about his stance on the possibility of an independent Palestinian state, a key component of his 2020 peace plan, Trump indicated that he might reconsider the idea. “Well, a lot of plans change with time,” he acknowledged. “A lot of death has occurred since I left and now came back. Now we are faced with a situation that’s different — in some ways better and in some ways worse. But we are faced with a very complex and difficult situation that we’ll solve,” he concluded.​