Donald Trump has set his sights on redeveloping Gaza in his newly announced peace plan.
The president has proposed a 20-point plan calling for an end to the war in Gaza, which includes the release of all remaining hostages held by Hamas and an outline for how he wants the region to be ruled after the war.
Trump’s proposal would have him serve as the chair of an international “Board of Peace,” which will supervise a temporary Palestinian committee responsible for handling day-to-day operations in Gaza, according to a copy of the plan released by the White House on Monday.
The 79-year-old former real estate developer also included a “Trump economic development plan to rebuild and energize Gaza” as part of the proposal, touting “many thoughtful investment proposals and exciting development ideas” that “well-meaning international groups” have put forward.
“Gaza will be redeveloped for the benefit of the people of Gaza, who have suffered more than enough,” the plan’s second point states.
Trump, who has built a personal business empire in the Middle East, previously suggested the U.S. could “take over” and “own” Gaza, fantasizing in February about how he would “level the site” and redevelop it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
At the time, Trump also proposed permanently resettling Palestinians outside the war-torn territory, an idea quickly rejected by Arab and Muslim U.S. allies in the region.
About 90 percent of Gaza’s 2 million Palestinian inhabitants have been displaced during the war, according to the United Nations, and a U.N.-backed panel declared a famine in the region last month.
Trump’s new peace plan, which garnered support from Muslim and Arab leaders when it was presented to them last week, promises that “no one will be forced to leave Gaza,” encouraging people to stay and “build a better Gaza.”
The White House released the plan just as Trump met with Benjamin Netanyahu. During a joint presser, the Israeli Prime Minister appeared to sign off on the proposal, which calls for all military operations to be suspended and states that “battle lines will remain frozen until conditions are met for the complete staged withdrawal.”
It remains to be seen whether Hamas will agree to the framework Trump has laid out.
The president has rapidly expanded his business into the Middle East in recent years, launching new ventures in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Oman. The Trump Organization has plans to build a Trump International Hotel & Tower in Dubai as well as a golf resort in Doha, even as ethical concerns over these deals have mounted.
