Al Jazeera:
United States President Donald Trump has welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House, marking the first visit of a foreign leader during his second term.
But Tuesday’s meeting was steeped in controversy as Trump repeatedly weighed in on the future of war-torn Gaza — and whether Palestinians should return to live in the enclave.
“Gaza is a guarantee that they’re going to end up dying. The same thing is going to happen again,” Trump said. “It’s happened over and over again. And it’s going to happen again.”
“So I hope we can do something where they wouldn’t want to go back. Who would want to go back? They’ve experienced nothing but death and destruction.”
Trump also suggested that the US aims to “take over” a depopulated Gaza, shaping its landscape for years to come.
“ I do see a long-term ownership position, and I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East and maybe the entire Middle East,” Trump said.
“This was not a decision made lightly. Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs.”
A fragile ceasefire recently paused hostilities in Gaza where, for the past 15 months, Israel has led a devastating military campaign that has killed an estimated 61,700 Palestinians.
United Nations experts and human rights advocates have compared the military campaign with a genocide. But the US remains a firm ally of Israel – and of Netanyahu’s government.
In remarks after his bilateral meeting with Netanyahu, Trump returned to a vision he had outlined earlier in the day, in which Palestinians would be settled “permanently” in “a beautiful area” outside of Gaza.
