Key figures in the Trump administration worked intensively Wednesday to moderate the president's sweeping proposal to "take control" of the Gaza Strip and relocate its Palestinian population, according to The New York Times. Senior officials emphasized that no American military presence would be established in the territory and any population movements would be strictly temporary in nature.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during remarks in Guatemala, indicated that Donald Trump's vision centered exclusively on Gaza's reconstruction rather than permanent control. US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff assured Republican senators that "the president has not committed to placing American forces on the ground or investing any US resources in Gaza."
The proposal, unveiled during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's White House visit, reverberated throughout the Arab world. Saudi Arabia issued an "absolute rejection" of any Palestinian relocation efforts, stressing that normalization with Israel remained contingent on the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Egypt and Jordan aligned with this opposition, as King Abdullah firmly rejected any attempts to displace Palestinians from their territory.
According to the New York Times, the initiative threatens to derail both the ongoing efforts to extend the Israel-Hamas ceasefire and America's broader goal of facilitating Israel-Saudi normalization. Hamas, which has maintained control over Gaza for two decades, swiftly dismissed the concept of mass population transfer – a particularly contentious issue in a region marked by a historical legacy of forced population displacements.
