Trump’s Palestinian refugee idea falls flat with Arab allies and confounds a Republican senator

By WILL WEISSERT, Associated Press

DORAL, Fla. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s propulsion to have Egypt and Jordan take successful ample numbers of Palestinian refugees from besieged Gaza fell level with those countries’ governments and near a cardinal legislature state successful Washington perplexed connected Sunday.

Fighting that broke retired successful the territory aft ruling Hamas attacked Israel successful October 2023 is paused owed to a fragile ceasefire, but overmuch of Gaza’s colonisation has been near mostly stateless by an Israeli military campaign. Hamas has been designated arsenic a violent enactment by the United States, Canada and the European Union.

Trump told reporters Saturday aboard Air Force One that moving immoderate 1.5 cardinal radical distant from Gaza mightiness mean that “we conscionable cleanable retired that full thing.”

Trump relayed what helium told Jordan’s King Abdullah erstwhile the 2 held a telephone earlier Saturday: “I said to him, ‘I’d emotion for you to instrumentality connected much due to the fact that I’m looking astatine the full Gaza Strip close now, and it’s a mess.’”

He said helium was making a akin entreaty to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi during a speech they were having portion Trump was astatine his Doral edifice successful Florida connected Sunday. Trump said helium would “like Egypt to instrumentality radical and I’d similar Jordan to instrumentality people.”

Egypt and Jordan, on with the Palestinians, interest that Israel would ne'er let them to instrumentality to Gaza erstwhile they person left. Both Egypt and Jordan besides person perpetually struggling economies and their governments, arsenic good arsenic those of different Arab states, fearfulness monolithic destabilization of their ain countries and the portion from immoderate specified influx of refugees.

Jordan already is location to much than 2 cardinal Palestinian refugees. Egypt has warned of the information implications of transferring ample numbers of Palestinians to Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, bordering Gaza.

Trump suggested that resettling astir of Gaza’s colonisation of 2.3 cardinal could beryllium impermanent oregon agelong term.

Jordan’s overseas minister, Ayman Safadi, said Sunday that his country’s absorption to what Trump floated was “firm and unwavering.” Some Israel officials had raised the thought aboriginal successful the war.

Egypt’s overseas curate issued a connection saying that the impermanent oregon semipermanent transportation of Palestinians “risks expanding the struggle successful the region.”

Trump does person leverage to wield implicit Jordan, which is simply a debt-strapped, but strategically important, U.S. state and is heavy babelike connected overseas aid. The U.S. is historically the single-largest supplier of that aid, including much than $1.6 cardinal done the State Department successful 2023.

Much of that comes arsenic enactment for Jordan’s information forces and nonstop fund support.

Jordan successful instrumentality has been a captious determination spouse to the U.S. successful trying to assistance support the portion stable. Jordan hosts immoderate 3,000 U.S. troops. Yet, connected Friday, caller Secretary of State Marco Rubio exempted information assistance to Israel and Egypt but not to Jordan, erstwhile helium laid retired the details of a frost connected overseas assistance that Trump ordered connected his archetypal time successful office.

Meantime, successful the United States, adjacent Trump loyalists tried to marque consciousness of his words.

“I truly don’t know,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham, erstwhile asked connected CNN’s “State of the Union” astir what Trump meant by the ”clean out” remark. Graham, who is adjacent to Trump, said the proposition was not feasible.

“The thought that each the Palestinians are going to permission and spell determination else, I don’t spot that to beryllium overly practical,” said Graham, R-S.C. He said Trump should support talking to Mideast leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and officials successful the United Arab Emirates.

“I don’t cognize what he’s talking about. But spell speech to MBS, spell speech to UAE, spell speech to Egypt,” Graham said. “What is their program for the Palestinians? Do they privation them each to leave?”

Trump, a staunch protagonist of Israel, besides announced Saturday that helium had directed the U.S. to merchandise a proviso of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel. Former President Joe Biden had imposed a clasp owed to concerns astir their effects connected Gaza’s civilian population.

Egypt and Jordan person made bid with Israel but enactment the instauration of a Palestinian authorities successful the occupied West Bank, Gaza and eastbound Jerusalem, territories that Israel captured successful the 1967 Mideast War. They fearfulness that the imperishable displacement of Gaza’s colonisation could marque that impossible.

In making his lawsuit for specified a monolithic colonisation shift, Trump said Gaza is “literally a demolition tract close now.”

“I’d alternatively get progressive with immoderate of the Arab nations, and physique lodging successful a antithetic location,” helium said of radical displaced successful Gaza. “Where they tin possibly unrecorded successful bid for a change.”

Associated Press writers Samy Magdy successful Cairo and Ellen Knickmeyer successful Washington contributed to this report.

Originally Published: January 27, 2025 astatine 11:50 AM EST