New US President Donald Trump has claimed credit for the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which took effect on 19 January. The US president thereby called himself a ‘peacemaker’.During a speech, Trump said there were ‘no wars’ when he left the White House after his first term. ‘When I came back, we had Russia-Ukraine and the Middle East was on fire,’ he added.
Trump asked some relatives of Israeli hostages in the audience to stand up. ‘We carry you in our hearts,’ he said. ‘As president, I will not rest until every hostage is returned to their families.’
Separately, it emerged that Trump reportedly shared his plans to take over Gaza prior to meeting Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu with only a few close confidants. This is what The Wall Street Journal writes on the authority of anonymous government officials. According to those sources, it concerns a plan that only recently took shape.
That Trump saw in Gaza an attractive haven for real estate development had long been known. ‘Gaza is a phenomenal location, by the sea, perfect weather. Great things could be done with it,’ the US president said after his inauguration on 20 January.
Sen. Fetterman: ‘I fully support’ Trump’s plan to send US troops to take over Gaza https://t.co/cH0IK1OW5E pic.twitter.com/oMVqFcRppJ
— New York Post (@nypost) February 5, 2025
Nevertheless, yesterday’s announcement came as a shock, even to his confidants within the Jewish community in the United States. One pro-Israel fundraiser called the plan ‘deranged’, writes WSJ. US former diplomats also have no confidence in the plans. ‘It is not a serious proposal,’ said former Israel ambassador Dan Shapiro.
But Trump is indeed serious about his plans, an anonymous adviser to the president tells the US newspaper. That includes taking over Greenland, the Panama Canal and other places: ‘He is deadly serious about it.’