U.S. President, Donald Trump has proposed that the United States take control of the Gaza Strip and transform it into what he described as a “freedom zone.”
Speaking during a meeting in Doha, Qatar, Trump said the U.S. should be directly involved in rebuilding the war-torn enclave, which has suffered near-total destruction since the war began following the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led terrorist attack on Israel.
“I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good. Make it a freedom zone,” Trump said. “Let the United States get involved and make it just a freedom zone.”
Doubling down on the idea, he added: “I’d be proud to have the United States have it, take it, make it a freedom zone,” though he provided no concrete details about what such a plan would entail.
Trump has previously floated the idea of resettling Gaza’s nearly two million residents and redeveloping the region into a resort destination, even sharing AI-generated videos of himself at a fictional “future Gaza Riviera.”
He argued that Gaza has become uninhabitable, citing satellite images and reports estimating that roughly 70% of the area’s infrastructure has been destroyed or damaged.
“It’s not like you’re trying to save something. There’s no building,” Trump said. “People are living under the rubble of buildings that collapsed, which is not acceptable.”
While the Israeli government has shown interest in Trump’s vision, the idea has been met with strong resistance from Arab nations and Middle Eastern allies, who have refused to resettle displaced Palestinians. Many Palestinians have also rejected the idea of abandoning their homeland, though some—exhausted by war, have expressed openness to relocation.
The future of Gaza remains uncertain, as cease-fire negotiations between Israel and Hamas have stalled since the release of Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander earlier this week.
