‘Nobody is expelling any Palestinians’: Trump’s new clarification on ‘Gaza takeover’

After shocking the world with his apparent plans to ‘take over’ Gaza, US President Donald Trump announced at a press conference in the Oval Office on Wednesday (March 12) that “nobody is expelling any Palestinians”.

His response to a reporter’s question — bringing many sighs of relief — came before a meeting with Irish PM Micheal Martin, where discussions were held to enhance aid to Gaza, while also advocating for a ceasefire and liberation of hostages from Hamas custody after the October 7, 2023 attacks.

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Hamas responds

A spokesperson from Hamas, Hazen Qassem, welcomed Trump’s apparent pullback from his proposal — that was earlier announced in a joint media briefing with Benjamin Netanyahu — to permanently displace over two million Palestinians from Gaza, sending shockwaves across the world.

He said, “If US President Trump’s statements represent a retreat from any idea of ​​displacing the people of the Gaza Strip, they are welcomed.”

“We call for this position to be reinforced by obligating the Israeli occupation to implement all the terms of the ceasefire agreements,” he added.

Trump’s apparent pullback has come after the US Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, met Arab foreign ministers in Qatar on Wednesday to discuss Gaza’s reconstruction, according to a report by Al Jazeera.

Also read: Muslim nations reject Trump's call to empty Gaza of its Palestinian population

Gaza reconstruction

The meeting in Qatar was attended by foreign ministers from Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan and the secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organisation, according to a statement from Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The ministers agreed with the US envoy to coordinate on plans and consultations to create a basis for the reconstruction efforts in Palestine.

The 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) formally adopted a plan for Gaza at an emergency meeting in Saudi Arabia, put forth by the Arab League.

The initiative was spearheaded by Egypt and emerged as a proposal to rebuild the Gaza strip. It proposed that Gaza’s administration be handed over to the Palestinian Authority, in response to Trump’s earlier threat of taking over Gaza and displacing its residents.

Also read: ‘Clean out’: Trump wants to relocate Gazans; Hamas vows to resist

US-Hamas negotiations

A political adviser to the Hamas leadership, Taher al-Nono, confirmed on Sunday that there had been direct talks with Washington at Doha. The talks focused on the release of an American-Israeli hostage held by Hamas.

Al-Nono said the negotiations between Hamas and the US hostage negotiator, Adam Boehler, also discussed the implementation of the phased ceasefire agreement between Hamas and Israel — with the goal to end war in Gaza.

Also read: Stopping aid entry into Gaza, says Israel as Hamas rejects ceasefire extension plan

According to media reports, the direct discussions between Boehler and Hamas have broken a decades-old policy by Washington that was against negotiating with groups the US branded as ‘terrorist’ organisations.

A delegation from Hamas has also met Egyptian mediators for the past two days. The armed-resistance group reaffirmed its willingness in negotiating for the next phase of the ceasefire with Israel. Israel sent its negotiators to Doha on Monday to discuss the ceasefire.

However, Israel’s complete blockade on Gaza preventing the entry of food, fuel and medicines has entered its 12th day. Many have described Israel’s actions as an unjust act of collective punishment and a ‘weaponisation of humanitarian aid’ to pressure Hamas to concede.