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US President Donald Trump was acting like a real estate magnate rather than like the leader of the world\u2019s most powerful country when he announced his desire on Tuesday for America to take over Gaza, expel all of its Palestinians and transform it into a \u201cMiddle Eastern Riviera.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site. Level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area, do a real job, do something different,\u201d Trump said in a joint press conference with his overjoyed Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, who said that the proposal is worth pursuing as it \u201ccould change history.\u201d<\/p>\n
When journalists at the White House had asked Trump earlier whether the United States was prepared to help fund the reconstruction of Gaza, the American president categorically denied any such intention, adding, in an obvious reference to Saudi Arabia, that there are countries in the region that have \u201ca lot of money.\u201d He also did not rule out the possibility of sending military troops to Gaza.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The reporters at both press conferences could not believe what they were hearing until they were able to confirm Trump\u2019s statements from the official transcripts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
On the previous weekend, meanwhile, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League issued a joint statement from Cairo, where they had gathered for talks, in which they flatly rejected Trump\u2019s stated plans to move Palestinians out of Gaza.<\/p>\n
Among the member-states of NATO, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was the first to react to Trump\u2019s \u201cunacceptable\u201d plan, which was also rejected by Britain, Germany and France. Everyone else kept mum. As far as the European Union is concerned, it has been going through something of a mute phase recently.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Trump seems bent on driving everybody crazy \u2013 and it\u2019s been less than two weeks since he officially assumed his duties as president of the United States.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the meantime, the latest public opinion poll carried out by the Anti-Defamation League showed that 46% of adults worldwide hold \u201csignificant antisemitic beliefs,\u201d which is almost double the rate in a similar survey conducted in 2014. This, of course, is a subject for a different discussion.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n