The Trump administration has agreed to continue discussions with Arab leaders about Egypt’s Gaza reconstruction plan [Getty]
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that no Palestinians will be displaced from Gaza, appearing to walk back on previous threats to expel the enclave’s 2.2 million residents.
“Nobody is expelling any Palestinians,” Trump said in response to a question from a reporter in the Oval Office.
His comment came during a meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin at the White House.
Trump shocked the world in January when he proposed a US “takeover” of Gaza and the permanent resettlement of its population in neighbouring countries.
The president made repeated public calls for Egypt and Jordan to take in displaced Gazans, triggering fury across the Arab world and praise from inside Israel.
Hamas welcomed the president’s remarks and reiterated its demands for Israel to stick to the terms of the ceasefire agreement.
“If US President Trump’s statements represent a retreat from any idea of ​​displacing the people of the Gaza Strip, they are welcomed,” Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said in a statement.
“We call for this position to be reinforced by obligating the Israeli occupation to implement all the terms of the ceasefire agreements.”
Egypt also expressed its “appreciation” of Trump’s comment.
“This position reflects an understanding of the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in [Gaza] and the importance of finding just, sustainable solutions to the Palestinian issue,” the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi has repeatedly ruled out accepting Palestinians from Gaza and responded to pressure from the Trump administration by cancelling a visit to Washington.
It has raced to put together a counter-proposal that would allow Gaza to be reconstructed without displacing the population, which was endorsed by the Arab League earlier this month.
Trump’s comment comes on the heels of a meeting between Arab diplomats and US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff in Doha to discuss Egypt’s reconstruction plan.
The foreign ministers of Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and the secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation attended the talks on Wednesday, according to a statement from Qatar’s foreign ministry.
Witkoff agreed to “continue consultations and coordination on this plan as a basis for the reconstructions efforts” in Gaza, the statement said.
ICJ to hold hearings on Israel’s Gaza siege
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) will hold hearings in April on Israel’s obligations to facilitate humanitarian aid to Palestinians, it said in a statement Wednesday.
The UN General Assembly in December voted to ask the ICJ to provide an opinion on the subject amid accusations that Israel is committing war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide by imposing a siege on Gaza.
Israel this month reimposed a blockade on the entire Gaza Strip, banning the entry of all goods and the supply of electricity.
The hearings will begin on 28 April at The Hague, where the court is based, the statement read.
Forty-five countries and organisations have submitted written statements to the court, including seven Arab nations, Turkey, and the Arab League.
The UN resolution, submitted by Norway in October, was adopted by an overwhelming majority of UN member states.
The resolution asks the court to provide an opinion on Israel’s legal obligations to “ensure and facilitate the unhindered provision of urgently needed supplies essential to the survival of the Palestinian civilian population as well as of basic services and humanitarian and development assistance”.
In a legal opinion issued in July, the ICJ held that the Israeli occupation is illegal under international law and instructed the Israeli government to withdraw from the Palestinian territory.
Israel is also facing genocide charges at the court in a case brought by South Africa last year.
