Trump suggests U.S. ‘long-term possession’ of Gaza as he says it might be the ‘Riviera of the Middle East’: Live

Trump proposes permanently displacing Palestinians in Gaza

President Donald Trump suggested Tuesday night that the U.S. “take over” the Gaza Strip and that the U.S. will “own” the territory.

“Instead of having to go back and do it again, the U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip,” said Trump during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”

“I do see a long-term ownership position, and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East,” he added.

“I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy,” the president said before suggesting that Gaza could be “the Riviera of the Middle East.”

This comes as Trump also said Tuesday that he is in “no rush” to speak with Chinese President Xi Jinping to resolve the new trade war between the world’s two largest economies, which was ignited by his sweeping 10 percent tariffs on all Chinese imports.

This follows Trump’s agreement to suspend his aggressive tariff hike against Mexico and Canada by one month after speaking with his counterparts in both nations. However, the threatened Chinese tariffs went ahead.

Trump uses Netanyahu press conference to suggest the US will ‘own’ Gaza

President Donald Trump on Tuesday suggested that the United States could take control of the Gaza Strip and spearhead rebuilding efforts if the Palestinians who’ve been displaced from Gaza during the war that began after the October 7 terror attacks on Israel are relocated to a more habitable location in Egypt, Jordan or elsewhere.

Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an East Room press conference after the two leaders met in the Oval Office, Trump said Palestinians could be relocated to “numerous sites” or “one large site” that would be constructed and funded by “neighboring countries of great wealth” and located in “other countries of interest with humanitarian hearts.”

Read more:

Andrew Feinberg5 February 2025 00:49

U.S. is ‘so wealthy but so unhappy‘ according to new report card on American well-being

The United States boasts the second-largest economy in the world — but perhaps at the cost of Americans’ quality of life, a new report revealed.

A State of the Nation report released Monday analyzed how the country is faring compared to others based on data from 1990 to 2023 across 15 topics, including the economy, the environment, life satisfaction, mental health and inequality. The report underscored how the U.S. is thriving economically but failing in nearly every other aspect analyzed.

The report summarized its findings by classifying the U.S. as a “nation of extremes.”

Kelly Rissman looks at the data.

Oliver O’Connell5 February 2025 00:35

‘The Riviera of the Middle East’

Kaitlan Collins of CNN asked Trump where the Gazans should go and who would be living in the Gaza he envisions.

“I envision world people living there. The world’s people,” said Trump. “I think you’ll make that into an international, unbelievable place.”

“I think the potential of the Gaza Strip is unbelievable. And I think the entire world, representatives from all over the world, will be there, and they’ll live there,” he added. “Palestinians will live there. Many people will live there, but they’ve tried the other and they’ve tried it for decades and decades and decades. It’s not going to work. It didn’t work. It will never work.”

“And you have to learn from history. History is, you know, just can’t let it keep repeating itself,” said the president. “We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal. And I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East.”

Gustaf Kilander5 February 2025 00:35

WATCH: Trump suggests U.S. takeover of Gaza

Gustaf Kilander5 February 2025 00:25

Trump calls Gaza a ‘hell-hole’

Trump called Gaza a “hell-hole” during his press conference with Netanyahu.

“You have to learn from history. You can’t keep doing the same mistake over and over again,” said Trump. “Gaza is a hell hole right now. It was before the bombing started, frankly, and we’re going to give people a chance to live in a beautiful community that’s safe and secure.”

Gustaf Kilander5 February 2025 00:23

‘I do see a long-term ownership position’

Kelly O’Donnell of NBC News asked Trump and Netanyahu: “Mr. President, Mr. Prime Minister, you are talking tonight about the United States taking over a sovereign territory. What authority would allow you to do that?”

“Are you talking about a permanent occupation?” she asked.

“I do see a long-term ownership position, and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East, and maybe the entire Middle East,” said Trump.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs with something that will be magnificent in a really magnificent area,” he added.

Gustaf Kilander5 February 2025 00:20

Musk has autonomy ‘almost no one can control’

Now, even senior White House officials tell the Times they’re being left in the dark as Musk exercises his unchecked power. Several former and current federal officials even told the outlet they’re feeling a sense of helplessness.

Katie Hawkinson reports.

Oliver O’Connell5 February 2025 00:05

Trump suggests U.S. will ‘take over’ Gaza

The press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump is underway.

Trump suggested that Palestinians be moved and that they live somewhere other than Gaza.

“We should go to other countries of interest with humanitarian hearts, and there are many of them that want to do this and build various domains that will ultimately be occupied by the 1.8 million Palestinians living in Gaza, ending the death and destruction and frankly, bad luck,” said Trump. “This could be paid for by neighboring countries of great wealth.”

Trump also suggested that the U.S. will “take over” the Gaza Strip.

“Instead of having to go back and do it again, the US will take over the Gaza Strip,” said Trump. “We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”

He added: “Level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area.”

Gustaf Kilander5 February 2025 00:02

FBI agents file class action lawsuit against Trump’s Justice Department

A class action lawsuit brought by nine anonymous agents in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday includes a copy of a three-page survey that Justice Department leadership is using to identify agents who worked on cases involving the president and the prosecution of hundreds of people in connection with the Capitol assault.

Another group of agents in a separate lawsuit are seeking a court’s protection from the “anticipated retaliatory decision to expose their personal information” and for the “potential vigilante action by those who they were investigating.”

Alex Woodward reports.

Oliver O’Connell4 February 2025 23:55

Trump set to attend Super Bowl between Chiefs and Eagles

Mike Bedigan has the story.

Oliver O’Connell4 February 2025 23:45

Source: independent.co.uk