As US President Donald Trump met with Jordan’s King Abdullah at the White House on Tuesday, he once again highlighted his intention of taking control of the Gaza Strip. Trump insisted that this move could benefit Gaza as it would lead to the creation of a lot of jobs. Trump said that the US is going to “take it, hold it and cherish it.” He further added that US is not going to ask other countries to participate as the country is “above” it.
Trump had earlier said he might stop sending aid to Jordan and Egypt unless they took in the Palestinians from Gaza. Jordan, an important US ally in the Middle East, turned down the idea. After holding a meeting with Trump, King Abdullah said that Jordan is against the idea of moving Palestinians from Gaza.
Jordan has not been in favour of moving the Palestinians since the beginning and it has quietly expressed its concerns about the kingdom’s ability to absorb more Palestinians. King Adbullah did say that Jordan is willing to take 2000 unwell Palestinian children and that they need to come to a conclusion that is in the best of interest of everyone.
However, Trump appeared confident of convincing. He said that once the talks are over, he believes they will have a parcel of land in both Jordan and Egypt to resettle the Palestinians.
Following his meeting with Trump at the White House, King Abdullah took X and said that they had a constructive chat and that Jordan still remains concerned with Trump’s proposal.
“I reiterated Jordan’s steadfast position against the displacement of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank,” he said. “This is the unified Arab position.” He added that it is important to rebuild Gaza but without moving the Palestinians.
Egypt too has rejected Trump’s idea to displace Palestinians from Gaza. The country’s foreign minister had said in a statement on Monday that Egypt has a plan to present which will help Gaza while also ensuring that the Palestinians don’t get displaced and get to have their legal rights.