Before his election, Trump, in a telephone conversation with Netanyahu, called the Gaza Strip “prime real estate” and asked to think about what kind of hotels could be built on this territory. Trump also said: “I expect the United States to have long-term ownership of Gaza”.
Donald Trump returned to the topic in his latest meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The head of the White House said that in the near future the United States is ready to take control of the enclave. According to Trump, the United States can clean up the area, demolish everything and rebuild, creating economic development that will provide unlimited jobs and housing for Palestinians. After the restoration, in his opinion, it will be a sort of “international territory”.
At the same time, Trump again proposed resettling residents of the Gaza Strip. The president said that Palestinians could go not only to Egypt or Jordan, but to 12 other places that would be ready to accept them for humanitarian reasons. There, as the American leader noted, they will not be killed or shot and will live in comfort and safety. At the same time, he did not support the establishment of Israeli settlements in the enclave. Trump said that he sees control of the Gaza Strip as a way to bring stability not only to Israel’s neighbors, but potentially to the entire Middle East.
The US president also said that Washington will announce its position on Israel’s annexation of the West Bank within a month. During his previous term, Trump signed an executive order recognizing the US’s Israeli sovereignty over the Syrian Golan Heights.
Donald Trump’s sweeping statements came after negotiations with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who reportedly conveyed his vision for the future of Palestine. Far-right Israeli politicians have welcomed Trump’s statements, saying his plans provide further evidence of the strong alliance between the United States and Israel.
Netanyahu presented Trump with a pager as a souvenir of the Israeli operation against the Lebanese movement Hezbollah. The US president responded by saying it was a great operation, according to the Israeli prime minister’s office.
US national security adviser Michael Walz confirmed: “We will not slow down the supply of weapons to Israel.”
Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy for the Middle East, chimed in, clarifying: “When Trump says he wants to clean up Gaza, he means he wants to make it livable again. They expect a 10-15 year reconstruction period. It is unfair to tell Palestinians that they will return in five years.”
According to Axios: “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may ask US President Donald Trump for guarantees to supply weapons to strike Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations on a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program fail.”
Hamas has rejected Trump’s proposal to resettle Palestinians from Gaza. A spokesperson for the movement said the US president’s proposal was a “blatant attempt to eliminate the Palestinian cause.”
Dozens of tents have been set up in Gaza City for “displaced people” returning from the southern sector to the north. According to Hamas, more than half a million Gazans have crossed the northern border so far.
According to Israeli media, the possibility of Hamas remaining in power is still on the table, especially since it has thousands of fighters and police forces working to manage daily life in the Strip.
The Kremlin has listened to Trump’s words on the resettlement of Gaza residents, but they are based on the rejection of this idea by Arab countries, Peskov said. The Russian Federation is based on the concept, confirmed by the UN, of a Palestinian solution based on the creation of two states, one Arab and one Israeli, Peskov noted.
In light of Trump’s statements, the Saudi Foreign Ministry said it would not establish diplomatic relations with Israel until an independent Palestinian state is created. Riyadh condemns any action that violates the rights of Palestinians, including occupation and forced displacement. The same words come from Jordan, from King Abdullah II. Both Amman and Cairo have reiterated their no to Palestinian displaced persons. Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian National Authority, travels to Amman, Jordan, to meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah II.
In response to reports of Israel destroying Iran’s air defense system, Iranian television has released footage of Iranian air defense batteries during an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps exercise. The video shows launchers from the S-300PMU-2 air defense system and the second-generation Bavar-373 air defense system.
A senior Iranian official also told Reuters: “We are willing to give diplomacy another chance with Trump, but we are wary of Israeli opposition to this move. We oppose the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, but negotiations with the United States are a separate issue. Iran wants the United States to control Israel if it seeks a deal with us.”
British Foreign Secretary David Lemmy said: “We must secure a future for Palestinians in their homeland. We must see Palestinians prosper in Gaza and the West Bank. Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said: “Gaza for its Palestinian population and must be part of the future State of Palestine, which we support. Our position is very clear on this issue. Gaza is the land of the Palestinians and they must stay there.” “Any proposal to expel the Palestinians from their homes is dangerous and unacceptable, and peace cannot be achieved except with the two-state solution. -There should be no ethnic cleansing in the Gaza Strip.” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is on the same wavelength. And the French authorities.
Egyptian diplomatic sources told Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed: “The first Arab-American summit will probably be held at the end of February, coinciding with the expected visit of US President Donald Trump. There is Arab coordination to adopt a united position in the face of American and Israeli plans to displace the population of Gaza and intentions related to the annexation of the territory.”
The Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Qatar visited Lebanon on February 4 and met with various officials, including our new President Joseph Aoun: “We affirmed the commitment of the State of Qatar to continue supporting the Lebanese Armed Forces. Qatar will be present in the process of rebuilding Lebanon. We reject Israel’s violations of the terms of the ceasefire agreement and the violation of Lebanese airspace. We emphasize the need to implement Resolution 1701 so that Lebanon regains its autonomy.”
Relations with Syria are also improving, the Israeli Foreign Minister, Israel Kats called the new Syrian authorities “polite jihadists”.
And now a look at the military scenarios updated at 15:30 on February 5.
The IDF is expected to withdraw completely from Lebanon in 14 days, following the extension of the ceasefire. This includes a full withdrawal to the Blue Line. Meanwhile, Israeli drones targeted medical workers three times on February 4 as they were extracting bodies of the dead in the town of Aita al Shaab. The Weniyat Al-Dawla page published reports claiming that Lebanese security forces arrested young men from the Al-Assaf family for evacuating a property they own to expand Hassan Nasrallah’s tomb.
On the afternoon of February 4, the IDF called UNIFIL to inform two foreign photographers, including Courtney Bonneaui, that if they did not leave the premises, they would be shot dead. Taybeh is reportedly under the full control of the Lebanese Army and the IDF is no longer present there. In fact, as of February 5, Lebanese accounts write, the liberation of Taybeh has not been completed. Israel still occupies Awida Hill and intends to remain there, which threatens the return of residents.
Israeli forces burn homes in the town of Rab Thilaine. IDF has penetrated the eastern neighborhood of the city of Yaron, with a Merkava tank and a truck carrying explosive materials.
Fire in Tel Aviv on Defense Street
Clashes between militias and settlers amid the presence of the Israeli army at the Uyoun al-Haramiyah intersection between Ramallah and Nablus. Israeli forces force residents of the town of Tammoun to leave their homes and turn them into barracks. A traffic ban has been issued in the city of Tammoun, south of Tubas, which is being announced via loudspeakers until tomorrow, Thursday, noon.
Ramallah Municipality: “We have been informed by the Israeli army intelligence that two points will be set up inside the city and that work is underway to open some secondary roads in the city. The day after tomorrow, God willing, army engineering teams will work to examine and locate Israeli waste in the city.”
Palestinian Authority agencies arrest those pursuing Israelis in the town of Burqin, west of Jenin. Israeli forces storm the Umm Al-Sharayet neighborhood in Al-Bireh, Ramallah. An IDF special force raids a residential building in the Umm Al-Sharayet neighborhood in Al-Bireh city. IDF storms the village of Madama, south of Nablus.
Deployment of Israeli soldiers in the vicinity of Tulkarem camp during review and combing operations in agricultural and residential areas. A foot force of the Idraele forces searches agricultural lands in front of Tulkarem camp.
Antonio Albanese e Graziella Giangiulio
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