The Gaza Strip is a place of destruction, a "hellhole," a place where everything is destroyed and life is impossible, Trump conveyed, among other things, to Netanyahu.
Two days ago, during a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, shocked the world and surprised only those who did not want to see it – there is a plan to relocate Palestinians from the Gaza Strip under the guise of concern for their safety.
The Gaza Strip is a place of destruction, a "hellhole," a place where everything is destroyed and life is impossible, Trump conveyed, among other things, to Netanyahu, who was smiling and who is the main culprit for why that piece of territory is exactly as the American president described it.
The United Nations has estimated that there are fifty million tons of rubble in the Gaza Strip and that it will take over twenty years and more than a billion dollars to remove it. Trump did not criticize his guest, who is on an international warrant for crimes in the Gaza Strip, but at one point even held a chair for him as he tried to sit down.
The American president said he is ready to send American troops to take over the Gaza Strip, clear the rubble, turn it into a tourist destination, and "create thousands and thousands of jobs."
Who is Running the United States?
This performance by Trump towards his guest did not go without criticism from his supporters. On social media, they expressed their disappointment, seeing it as a departure from Trump's proclaimed "America First" policy. Others noted that Trump is returning favors to the pro-Israel lobby in the United States for the help they provided him during his campaign.
Returning favors in the American political system is not new. Everyone has the right to lobby as long as it is transparent. Politicians are expected to represent the views of those who paid them or helped them in other ways. For decades, powerful Israeli, Armenian, Albanian, and other lobbies have been successfully operating there.
But even in such circumstances, Trump's calls for the ethnic cleansing of two million people sound like a conspiracy theory. It is no secret that the current American administration is filled with pro-Israeli officials like never before, which likely led Netanyahu to conclude that Israel has never had a greater friend in the White House than President Trump.
What Trump said on Tuesday, Netanyahu did not say. Even for him, it is too much to say that he intends to expel millions of people from their land after their homes, roads, schools, hospitals, water systems, religious buildings, and water sources have been destroyed in bombings...
A day later, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who for many represents the voice of reason in Trump's administration because he upholds known tenets of American policy, tried to fix things. From Guatemala, he conveyed that Trump meant temporary relocation of the population, as otherwise, reconstruction could not begin, adding that the president's offer to the Palestinians was a "generous move" and that they would return to their homes.
An Elephant in a China Shop or a Saboteur?
Trump's unprecedented performance and Rubio's subsequent attempt to justify the president revealed to the world that a plan to relocate Palestinians exists.
With his statement, Trump showed the world that there is a plan to relocate Palestinians and that accordingly, we can conclude that the reason there is no Palestinian state lies in the circles from which Netanyahu comes. Former minister and Netanyahu's coalition partner Itamar Ben-Gvir, who has spoken about this before, did not hide his enthusiasm for Trump's statements. Netanyahu described Trump's call for the de facto ethnic cleansing of the Gaza Strip as "thinking outside the box with fresh ideas."
If we accept Rubio's explanation of Trump's good intentions, then the American president has exposed a policy in front of millions of people. Trump has shown that the blame lies on the Israeli side and that the authorities in Tel Aviv do not want the formation of a Palestinian state. Some have concluded that Trump's "strong" statements are just preparing the ground for negotiations and that this is his style, as he has shown recently in relations with Panama, Canada, Mexico, and Denmark.
If that is the case, then Trump acted like an "elephant in a china shop," showing ignorance of international politics and revealing the criminal intentions of his allies and his administration, or perhaps he is a cold-blooded saboteur of Netanyahu's policy.
In support of this dilemma, let's cite two examples related to Trump's political style.
Preparing for Netanyahu's visit, part of the American media rehashed a story several decades old – Iran is a few months away from a nuclear bomb. Then Trump conveyed that Tehran must not have a nuclear bomb and said he wants to see Iran as a "great and successful" country, proposing negotiations and a "great Middle Eastern celebration" in case of an agreement.
The second example is an ironic praise of such an approach to politics. Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said during Trump's first term that he is the best American president ever because he is honest. Shortly before, Trump had stated that he sent American troops to eastern Syria to control the oil fields there.
These days, numerous media reported, that the Israeli army is destroying Palestinian homes in the West Bank, in territory never ruled by Hamas, and Trump is imposing sanctions on the International Criminal Court, which has issued an international warrant for Netanyahu.
What Trump and the United States will do shortly in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank is currently unknown. But what is certain is that Trump's management of the White House will leave serious consequences for America's reputation in the world, even among allies, and subsequently, consequences for American political, economic, and other interests around the world.
This article was previously published on the news portal nap.ba.
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