In a White House press conference last Tuesday, US president Trump suggested that the US could “take over” and “own” Gaza as part of a new proposal to ‘address’ the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. When asked about the potential return of Gazans who had been forced to flee during the past two years, Trump immediately dismissed the idea. Alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he responded, “Why would they want to return? The place has been hell”, a remark met with a smirk from Netanyahu.

In moments like these, it’s easy to feel like you’re hallucinating. While Donald Trump has not been one to shy away from unhinged public statements, this may have eclipsed the lot. What was most unsettling about this press conference was the stark candour in which Trump promoted policies that amount to nothing less than ethnic cleansing. Behind his unserious, facetious demeanour, Trump openly promoted policies that would forcibly expel Palestinian people from their own homes. Policies completely neglect the Israeli government’s long-standing contribution to the devastation in Gaza.

Over the past two years, the conflict in Gaza has claimed more than 50,000 lives and generated an estimated 50,000,000 tonnes of debris. This damage is expected to take up to 21 years to remove. In wake of such harrowing figures, Trump chose to reduce the homeland of the Palestinian people to a business opportunity: a potential “riviera” to be filled with luxurious coastal housing projects.

Though staggering at first, this rhetoric is by no means far removed from the Donald Trump playbook. By appointing a cabinet with a collective net worth of over $460bn, Trump has made clear his true priorities. These lie in preserving and advancing the interests of America’s most wealthy. In addition, Trump argues that US ownership of Gaza would “create an economic development” made up of valuable waterfront property. Trump has again prioritised the pockets of the country’s richest citizens – this time at the expense of some of the world’s most oppressed and afflicted populations.

Donald Trump signified the start of a new chapter in the Israel-Hamas conflict, one both harrowing, and at the same, entirely unsurprising. For too long the people of Gaza have been dehumanised, their lives reduced to pawns in a ruthless game of global strategy. Yet, it is evident to me that this proposal has done more to deepen these issues than address them. Trump and Netanyahu show no intention of allowing Gazans to return to Gaza. 

Fortunately, outside of Israel, no other country has expressed any form of support for this plan and its dehumanising rhetoric. Many countries, including China, Russia and Germany, publicly condemned the president’s statements. Additionally, the multitude of outrageous foreign policy statements that Trump made in his first-term (all of which never came to fruition), likely indicate that we won’t be seeing Trump Towers in Gaza anytime soon!

Whilst these comments offer little concrete insight into American plans for addressing the Israel-Hamas conflict, they undoubtedly signify America’s complete disregard for both the Palestinian people and right to nationhood. As Israel’s greatest ally, this sets a dangerous precedent that could indicate the beginning of the end for the Palestinian state today. Whilst language advocating the eradication of the Palestinian right is certainly not new to the Netanyahu regime, never before has it been so explicitly endorsed by a leader of the free world.

Alternatively, there are encouraging signs that the acknowledgment of the Palestinian right to nationhood is not fading, but growing stronger. Young people seem to be more engaged and aware of Palestinian suffering than ever before. One third of American adults under 30 say their sympathies lie with the Palestinian people. Only 14% say their sympathies lie with the Israeli people (Silver, 2014). Contrastingly, 47% of Americans aged 65 or older, sympathise with the Israeli people, while far fewer (9%) sympathize with Palestinians (Silver, 2024). More importantly, the Palestinian cause has now become a symbol for suffering and injustice across the world. It serves as a unifying cultural force, especially across Arab nations. With deep-rooted Arab support for the Palestinian plight continuing to grow, any enforcement of Trump’s proposals would undoubtedly be faced with severe contestation from neighbouring countries.

Whilst these factors may inspire optimism for the future of the Palestinian state, they must not detract from the threat that Trump and his comments pose. In an unhinged, yet regrettably predictable, turn of events, the leader of the free world openly endorsed the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people from Gaza. Whether these comments hold any substance, they set a dangerous precedent by overlooking a fundamental truth: Gaza belongs to Gazans.

References:

Amnesty International (2025). Israel/ OPT: President Trump’s claim that US will take over Gaza and forcibly deport Palestinians appalling and unlawful. Amnesty International. https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/02/israel-opt-president-trumps-claim-that-us-will-take-over-gaza-and-forcibly-deport-palestinians-appalling-and-unlawful/.

Graham-Harrison, E. (2025). UN chief warns against ‘ethnic cleansing’ after Trump’s Gaza proposal. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/feb/05/un-chief-warns-against-ethnic-cleansing-after-donald-trump-gaza-proposal.

Marsden, H. (2025). ‘Riviera of the Middle East’: what does Trump’s Gaza plan mean for the region? The Week. https://theweek.com/world-news/riviera-of-the-middle-east-what-does-trumps-gaza-plan-mean-for-the-region  

Silver, L. (2024). Younger Americans stand out in their views of the Israel-Hamas war. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2024/04/02/younger-americans-stand-out-in-their-views-of-the-israel-hamas-war/.

Yeung, T. (2025). Relocation of Gazans would be temporary, Rubio says. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4g9xgj2429o.

Yousif, N. (2025). Trump wants US to take ownership of Gaza Strip. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyk0r3kvxyo.