President Donald Trump's idea for the United States to "take over" the Gaza Strip is an attempt to get Israel's Arab neighbors to come to the table with fresh ideas for how to end the centuries-long conflict.
Since getting sworn into office last month, Trump has repeatedly mentioned the possibility of Jordan and Egypt opening their borders to allow for the mass evacuation of Palestinians out of Gaza over concerns that the area is uninhabitable. However, the idea is tainted by the perception that it would amount to ethnic cleansing, something no Arab nation would want to be associated with.
The president has not been presented with any “realistic solutions on how those miles and miles and miles of debris” and unexploded bombs will be removed to make the area livable, Trump's national security adviser, Mike Waltz, said Wednesday on CBS.
"The fact that nobody has a realistic solution and [President Trump] puts some very bold, fresh, new ideas on the table, I don't think should be criticized in any way," he said.
The former Florida congressman added, "I think [Trump’s plan] is going to bring the entire region to come [up] with their own solutions."
Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, said after his trip to Gaza that it would likely take anywhere from 10 to 15 years to rebuild Gaza and called it "uninhabitable."
"There is nothing left standing. Many unexploded ordnances. It is not safe to walk there. It is very dangerous. I wouldn't have known this without going there and inspecting," he said. "There has been this perception we can get to a solid plan for Gaza in five years. But it's impossible. This is a 10 to 15-year rebuilding plan."
The Trump administration's position that Gaza should be evacuated due to the unsafe living conditions after 15 months of war neglects to take into consideration the concern from Palestinians and humanitarians that they wouldn't be allowed back into Gaza once reconstruction is complete.
"While it may seem logical and easy simply just to move the people out of the way so reconstruction can take place, it runs into a host of humanitarian, legal, and historical issues in the region," Alex Plitsas, a senior fellow with the Atlantic Council, told the Washington Examiner. "The real problem is that even if there is a logical argument made to move the people out of the way for reconstruction, removing them from Gaza at the prospect of not being able to return would be the end to a Palestinian state."
Hamas, which is desperately attempting to maintain control of the Gaza Strip, also denigrated Trump's suggestion.
Hamas said Trump's plan was a “recipe for creating chaos and tension in the region," adding, “Instead of holding the Zionist occupation accountable for the crime of genocide and displacement, it is being rewarded, not punished."
It's also unclear how the U.S. would "take over" Gaza and maintain security, though Trump didn't rule out deploying U.S. troops. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that the president "has not committed" to deploying U.S. forces to Gaza.
If the strip isn't cleared out, the U.S. troops involved would likely be at risk against Hamas fighters, who have proven in recent weeks that they maintain some capabilities despite Israel's war aims.
"It has the makings of an insurgency if the Palestinians, and particularly Hamas, decides that they want to fight back in that situation, so it would absolutely put US troops in harm's way, and it would also cost a significant amount of money," Plitsas added.
The idea of having U.S. forces oversee a 10- to 15-year reconstruction project in Gaza would also go against Trump's promise to stop foreign wars and for his administration to turn its attention away from the Middle East and toward the Pacific region.
The U.S. has a military presence in several Arab nations in the Middle East, including Iraq, Syria, and Jordan. Those troops have been utilized to thwart attacks across the region since the Israel-Hamas war broke out after Hamas's Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks.
Five U.S. troops have been killed in the region since then. Three were killed when an Iranian-backed militia launched a drone attack on Tower 22, a U.S. military base in Jordan, in January 2024. Two Navy SEALs were killed around the same time as they tried to board a vessel in the Gulf of Aden, purportedly going from Iran to its allies in Yemen, known as the Houthis, but were lost at sea.
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One of Trump's allies, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), warned that putting more U.S. troops in the region could lead to a repeat of the 1983 Hezbollah attack that killed 241 service members at the Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, Lebanon.
"I fear putting American troops on the ground now in the midst of a raging Middle East will yield the same results as it did in 1983. It is always best to try to learn from the past," he said.