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Trump pushes to turn Gaza into a ‘Middle East Riviera’: international reactions

While Trump proposes relocating Palestinians and making Gaza a tourist destination under US control, China, Egypt, Hamas, and other leaders categorically reject the idea

The plan unveiled by Donald Trump during his meeting in Washington with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ignited tempers internationally. The idea, according to which the US would take control of the Gaza Strip in order to turn it into a sort of ‘Middle East Riviera’ – with Palestinians relocated to other countries – has raised strong and mixed reactions.

Hamas called Trump’s statements ‘racist’ and aligned with the positions of the Israeli extreme right. Abdel Latif al-Qanou, the group’s spokesman, denounced a policy that, in his view, aims at the forced relocation of the Palestinian people and the elimination of their cause. Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas also expressed his categorical rejection: ‘We will not allow ourselves to be deprived of the rights for which we have fought for decades,’ he said, emphasising the need for a two-state solution with Jerusalem as the capital.

China reacted firmly. Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian emphasised that Beijing is against the ‘forced relocation’ of Gaza residents, upholding the principle that the Palestinian government should continue to rule there. China hopes that all parties will use the ceasefire and post-conflict phase as an opportunity to put the Palestinian issue back on the path of a shared political solution.

On the Egyptian side, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty stated that Egypt is firmly committed to the rapid reconstruction of the Gaza Strip without forcing Palestinians to leave their land. During a meeting with Palestinian National Authority Prime Minister Mohammed Mustafa in Cairo, both stressed the importance of continuing with reconstruction projects that allow the population to remain in their homeland.

Turkey, on the other hand, reacted harshly: Hakan Fidan, head of Turkish diplomacy, defined the idea of a forced expulsion of Palestinians as unacceptable, stating that ‘the region cannot accept such an approach’. The Italian Foreign Minister, Antonio Tajani, also expressed scepticism, recalling that attempts to evacuate the civilian population of Gaza have not found favour with Jordan and Egypt.

Trump’s plan, which envisages a radical transformation of the Strip and a ‘long-term ownership’ by the United States, therefore appears to be a provocative idea, destined to create divisions and fuel further tensions in the already complex Middle East region.

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