(Reuters) -President Donald Trump said the United States would take over the Gaza Strip after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere.
Here is some global reaction to the announcement.
SENIOR HAMAS OFFICIAL SAMI ABU ZUHRI
“Our people in the Gaza Strip will not allow these plans to pass, and what is required is to end the (Israeli) occupation and aggression against our people, not to expel them from their land.”
SAUDI ARABIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY
“Saudi Arabia rejects any attempts to displace the Palestinians from their land. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has affirmed the kingdom’s position in ‘a clear and explicit manner’ that does not allow for any interpretation under any circumstances.”
CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY
“China hopes all parties will take ceasefire and post-conflict governance as an opportunity to bring the Palestinian issue back on the right track of political settlement based on the two-state solution.”
TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER HAKAN FIDAN
U.S. President Donald Trump’s comments on a plan to take over Gaza are “unacceptable”. Any plans leaving Palestinians “out of the equation” would lead to more conflict.
PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANISATION SECRETARY GENERAL HUSSEIN AL-SHEIKH
“The Palestinian leadership affirms its firm position that the two-state solution, in accordance with international legitimacy and international law, is the guarantee of security, stability and peace.”
ISLAMIC JIHAD
“Trump’s positions and plans are a dangerous escalation that threaten Arab and regional national security, especially in Egypt and Jordan, which the U.S. administration wants to put in confrontation with the Palestinian people and their rights.”
UK ENVIRONMENT MINISTER STEVE REED
“The UK government’s position … is that Palestinian civilians must be able to return to their homes and rebuild their lives. For those people, the last …months have been a living nightmare, and it’s important they’re able to go home after this to start to rebuild.
“They’ll need a lot of support from the international community to do that, but it’s the only way we’re going to get to the long-term solution for all of this, and a long-term peace, which is a two-state solution.”
AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE
“Australia’s position is the same as it was this morning, as it was last year. The Australian government supports on a bipartisan basis a two-state solution.”
DEMOCRATIC AND PALESTINIAN-AMERICAN U.S. REPRESENTATIVE RASHIDA TLAIB
“Palestinians aren’t going anywhere. This president can only spew this fanatical bullshit because of bipartisan support in Congress for funding genocide and ethnic cleansing. It’s time for my two-state solution colleagues to speak up.”
U.S. MUSLIM ADVOCACY GROUP COUNCIL ON AMERICAN ISLAMIC RELATIONS
“Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people, not the United States, and President Trump’s call to expel Palestinians from their land is an absolute non-starter.”
“If the Palestinian people were ever somehow forcibly expelled from Gaza, this crime against humanity would spark widespread conflict, put the final nail in the coffin of international law, and destroy what remains of our nation’s international image and standing.”
PAUL O’BRIEN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL USA
“Removing all Palestinians from Gaza is tantamount to destroying them as a people. Gaza is their home. Gaza’s death and destruction is a result of the government of Israel killing civilians by the thousands, often with U.S. bombs.”
DEMOCRATIC U.S. SENATOR CHRIS MURPHY
“He’s totally lost it…A U.S. invasion of Gaza would lead to the slaughter of thousands of U.S. troops and decades of war in the Middle East. It’s like a bad, sick joke.”
(Compiled by Stephen Coates, Michael Perry and Ros Russell)
