Trump floats Gaza takeover proposal

President Donald Trump's proposal for the US to take over war-ruined Gaza and create a "Riviera of the Middle East" after resettling Palestinians elsewhere has shattered US policy on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, drawing global condemnation.

The shock move from Trump, a longtime New York property developer, drew rebukes from international powers including Russia, China and Germany, which said it would bring "new suffering and new hatred". Regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia rejected the proposal outright.

Trump, in his first major Middle East policy announcement, said he envisioned building a resort where international communities could live in harmony after over 15 months of Israeli bombardment devastated the tiny coastal enclave and killed more than 47,000 people, by Palestinian tallies.

It is not clear whether Trump will go ahead with his controversial proposal or is simply taking an extreme position as a bargaining strategy. Trump said that he plans to visit Gaza, Israel and Saudi Arabia, but did not say when he will go. "Everybody loves it," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday, referring to his Gaza idea.

Michael Milshtein, a former intelligence officer and one of Israel's leading specialists on Hamas, said Trump's comments put Israel on a collision course with its Arab neighbours. "Maybe Trump is trying to promote pressure on the Arab states (so) they will not create any obstacles if he tries to promote a normalisation between Saudi Arabia and Israel."

Trump offered no specifics as he announced his proposal while welcoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the White House on Tuesday. He said he and his team had been discussing the possibility with Jordan, Egypt and other regional countries.

Netanyahu, who met on Wednesday with USVice President JD Vance, would not be drawn into discussing the proposal, other than to praise Trump for trying a new approach.

Jordan's King Abdullah said on Wednesday he rejected any moves to annex land and displace Palestinians. Egypt said it would back Gaza recovery plans, following a ceasefire that took effect on Jan. 19, without Palestinians leaving the territory. In Gaza, Palestinians living among the wreckage of their former homes said they would never accept the idea.

"Trump can go to hell, with his ideas, with his money, and with his beliefs. We are going nowhere. We are not some of his assets," said Samir Abu Basel in Gaza City.

World leaders said they continued to support the two-state solution that has formed the basis of U.S. policy in the region for decades, which has held that Gaza would be part of a future Palestinian state that includes the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

US National Security adviser Mike Waltz on Wednesday downplayed the idea the U.S. was walking away from longstanding Middle East policy. "I certainly didn't hear the president say it was the end of the two-state solution," he told CBS News.

An official from Palestinian militant group Hamas, which ruled the Gaza Strip before the war there that followed Hamas' Oct 7, 2023 cross-border attack on Israel, said Trump's proposal was "ridiculous and absurd".

"Any ideas of this kind are capable of igniting the region,"

Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters, saying Hamas remains committed to the ceasefire accord with Israel and negotiating its next phase. Trump's pronouncements appear to run counter to US public opinion, which polls have shown is overwhelmingly opposed to new military entanglement in conflict zones following lengthy interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan.