Trump’s proposal to clean out Gaza is a ‘frightening trick’, locals warn
Trump’s proposal to clean out Gaza is a ‘frightening trick’, locals warn
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Residents tell Bel Trew in Jerusalem and Nedal Hamdouna in Gaza that Trump should focus on rebuilding Strip, not forcibly displacing its people. Residents in Gaza have warned that Donald Trump’s proposals to “clean out” the war-ravaged Strip are a dangerous and “frightening trick” which amounts to bringing an end to Palestine.
![[Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Force One as he travels from Las Vegas to Miami]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/26/15/SEI237380200.jpg)
Masri Falah, a 36-year-old from northern Gaza who has been displaced to Khan Younis in the south, told The Independent the focus should be on rebuilding Gaza, not forcibly displacing its people. Having already endured 15 months of unprecedented bombardment, Mr Falah warned that any such move to send Gaza’s population to Jordan and Egypt would not merely be temporary, but would see the Palestinians permanently shut out of their homeland.
![[Palestinians who were displaced to the south at Israel’s order during the war, make their way back to their homes in northern Gaza, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/09/SEI237529956.jpg)
“If this proposal happens, to temporarily evacuate the Gaza Strip, the people of Gaza will not be returned to the Strip again,” he said. “I hope that they will set up camps to live in within the Gaza Strip until the rubble is quickly removed. And to bring in appropriate equipment to remove the rubble and rebuild.”.
![[Civilians were seen heading for their homes in northern Gaza on Monday morning]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/27/08/SEI237528831.jpg)
Ibrahim Abu Serial, 46, who was displaced in Deir al-Balah, said Mr Trump’s comments were part of attempts to destroy the idea of Palestinian citizenship, and the right for Palestinian refugees to return. He pointed to orders by the Israeli government to shut down the United Nations Palestinian Refugee Agency (UNRWA), which is now banned in Israel and has been accused of supporting terror groups.
![[Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is yet to comment on Donald Trump’s proposals]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/26/15/SEI237371697.jpg)
