Trump pushes Gaza takeover plan, dismisses Arab opposition

US President Donald Trump on Friday insisted his proposal to seize the Gaza Strip “really works,” though he said he would not enforce it.

“I’ll tell you the way to do it-it’s my plan. I think that’s the plan that really works. But I’m not forcing it. I’m just going to sit back and recommend it,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News Radio’s Brian Kilmeade.

Expressing surprise at Jordan and Egypt’s rejection of his scheme, Trump remarked, “We pay Jordan and Egypt billions of dollars a year, and I was a little surprised they’d say that.”

He also suggested that Palestinians would willingly leave Gaza if offered an alternative, saying, “If given the choice between staying or living in a nice community, they would go.”

Calling Gaza a “great location,” Trump questioned why Israel had ever relinquished it, saying, “I don’t know why Israel ever gave that up. Why did they give it up?”

Trump has repeatedly advocated for a US-led takeover of Gaza, proposing to displace its population and transform the besieged territory into “the Riviera of the Middle East.”

His proposal has been widely condemned across the Arab world and internationally as a blatant push for ethnic cleansing.