U.S. President Donald Trump is facing accusations of supporting ethnic cleansing in Gaza after saying he wants to “clean out the whole thing.”
Trump made the remark while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Saturday.
“I’d like Egypt to take people, and I’d like Jordan to take people. I could — I mean, you’re talking about probably a million and a half people. And we just clean out that whole thing. It’s — you know, it’s — over the centuries, that’s — that’s many, many conflicts, that site. And I don’t know. It’s — something has to happen. But it’s literally a demolition site right now. Almost everything’s demolished.”
Egypt and Jordan have rejected Trump’s call. Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said: “Our stance that the two-state solution is the path to achieving peace is firm and unwavering. Our rejection of displacement is also firm and unwavering. This is not only the steadfast and unwavering position of the kingdom, but it is also a necessity for achieving the security, stability and peace that we all desire.”
Hassan Jabareen of the Palestinian human rights group Adalah likened Trump’s proposal to the “ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.”
Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called Trump’s proposal to clear Gaza of Palestinians a great idea. Smotrich has backed building new illegal Israeli settlements in Gaza.
