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Gaza Map Shows What Territory Would Look Like Under US Control | Avi Melamed’s insights quoted in this article by Jordan King and John Feng Reporter for NEWSWEEK.
Former Israeli intelligence official and regional analyst Avi Melamed told Newsweek: “Trump’s statement is possibly part of what’s now emerging as his modus operandi—making tough and blunt statements and taking harsh positions to force his adversaries to break from their entrenched positions. In many ways that strategy has worked for him closer to home and it will be interesting and refreshing to see how this may impact the ongoing negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
“In many ways, Trump’s statement has already set Hamas back to the point where it will need to make serious compromises, including over hostage releases, disarmament and Gaza’s postwar governance. Trump’s statement makes it clear—the past will no longer be the goal, but rather Trump plans to redraw the map of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.”
Why It Matters
If Trump’s plan for the U.S. to “take over” Gaza goes ahead, it will mean an American presence in perhaps the most hotly disputed territory in the world, and the fate of the Palestinians who live there is unknown.
What To Know
Trump announced his plan during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.
He said the U.S. would “be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and all of the other weapons on the site.”
Trump added that he saw the U.S. taking a “long-term ownership position” which he believes will bring “stability to that part of the Middle East and maybe the entire Middle East.”
The plan would include the roughly 2 million people living in the Gaza Strip having “no choice but to leave,” Trump said. He has previously said he would pressure Egypt and Jordan to take in the Palestinians—something both countries, along with several other Arab nations, have rejected as forced displacement.
Other Palestinians would retain parts of the West Bank, which along with Gaza, has long been part of a Palestinian state outlined in a two-state solution supported by Washington and the U.K, Reuters reports.
Gaza has been decimated by Israeli bombing campaigns and ground assaults since Hamas carried out the October 7 attacks on Israel in 2023, in which more than 1,200 people were killed and 250 were taken hostage into the Strip.
More than 47,500 Gazans have been killed in the war, according to Hamas-run health authorities and at least 1.9 million people have been internally displaced, according to the U.N. A ceasefire has been in place since January 19.
It is too early to know whether Trump’s proposal will actually go ahead, with many seeing Trump’s comments as a tactic to wield more power at the negotiating table.
Former Israeli intelligence official and regional analyst Avi Melamed told Newsweek: “Trump’s statement is possibly part of what’s now emerging as his modus operandi—making tough and blunt statements and taking harsh positions to force his adversaries to break from their entrenched positions. In many ways that strategy has worked for him closer to home and it will be interesting and refreshing to see how this may impact the ongoing negotiations between Israel and Hamas.
“In many ways, Trump’s statement has already set Hamas back to the point where it will need to make serious compromises, including over hostage releases, disarmament and Gaza’s postwar governance. Trump’s statement makes it clear—the past will no longer be the goal, but rather Trump plans to redraw the map of the Israel-Palestinian conflict.”
What People Are Saying
Trump said: “We’re going to take over that piece, we’re going to develop it, create thousands of thousands of jobs. And it’ll be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of.”
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said in a statement shared with Newsweek: “We reject Trump’s statements. We consider them a recipe for creating chaos and tension in the region. Our people in the Gaza Strip will not allow these plans to pass, and what is required is to end the occupation and aggression against our people, not to expel them from their land.”
Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian envoy to the United Nations, said: “Our homeland is our homeland.”
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi said last week during a news conference: “The solution to this issue is the two-state solution. It is the establishment of a Palestinian state. The solution is not to remove the Palestinian people from their place. No.”
Netanyahu welcomed the announcement, calling it “something that could change history and it’s worthwhile really pursuing this area.”
What Happens Next
Trump has not given a timeline of when the United States would take over Gaza or begin the relocation of Palestinians.
Gaza Map Shows What Territory Would Look Like Under US Control | Avi Melamed’s insights quoted in this article by Jordan King and John Feng Reporter for NEWSWEEK.
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