In a newly released clip from a sit-down interview with Fox News host Bret Baier, President Donald Trump said Palestinians would not have the right to return to Gaza as he laid out his proposal for the U.S. to “own” Gaza.
“We’ll build beautiful communities for the 1.9 million people, we’ll build beautiful communities. Safe communities, could be five, six could be two, but we’ll build safe communities a little bit away from where they are, where all of this danger is. In the meantime, I would own this. Think of it as a real estate development for the future,” Trump said.
People walk with belongings along al-Rashid street between Gaza City and Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip, Feb. 10, 2025.
Eyad Baba/AFP via Getty Images
Baier then asked Trump: “Would the Palestinians have the right to return?”
“No, they wouldn’t, because they’re going to have much better housing, much better — in other words, I’m talking about building a permanent place for them, because if they have to return now, it will be years before you could ever — it’s not habitable,” Trump said. “It will be years before it could happen. I’m talking about starting to build and I think I could make a deal with Jordan, I think I could make a deal with Egypt, you know, we give them billions and billions of dollars a year.”
Trump is set to meet with Jordan’s King Abdullah II at the White House on Tuesday. Jordan remains steadfast against the proposal to take in more Palestinians.
-ABC News’ Michelle Stoddart
