Egypt Daily News – The American newspaper “The New York Times” stated that the remarks made by U.S. President Donald Trump, in which he retreated from his plan to displace the residents of Gaza, represent a remarkable shift in one of the most brazen foreign policy proposals ever put forward by a sitting president.
Trump Backs Down from Plan to Displace Gaza Residents
The newspaper continued that in a phone interview with Fox News host on Friday, Trump appeared to acknowledge that his persuasion efforts had failed and that Egypt and Jordan’s refusal to accept displaced people from Gaza would render the idea unfeasible.
Trump told Fox News host Brian Kilmeade: “Well, we give Jordan and Egypt billions of dollars annually, and I was a little surprised that they said that, but they did,” before adding: “I’ll tell you, the way to do it is my plan. I think this is the plan that really works. But I’m not forcing it. I’ll just sit back and recommend it.”
The newspaper continued: “In the interview, Trump seemed to resign himself to the fact that Gaza must be rebuilt without U.S. ownership and without displacing its residents, though he also appeared to interpret Israel’s long occupation of the area as ownership.”
Earlier this month, the U.S. president stated that he preferred control over Gaza and the displacement of Palestinian residents from the devastated coastal enclave, but Egypt and Jordan firmly refused to cooperate.
At the time, Trump claimed he would be able to convince the leaders of these two countries—and possibly others in the region—to accept Palestinians through sheer force of will, saying: “They say they won’t accept. And I say they will.”
Arab Rejection Thwarts Trump’s Gaza Plan
Leaders of Egypt, Jordan, and the Gulf Cooperation Council met yesterday, Friday, in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, to discuss possible alternatives to Trump’s plans ahead of the broader Arab League summit in Egypt on March 4.
