Trump backs off aid threat to Jordan but insists on Gaza takeover
President Donald Trump cited “US authority” to claim the Gaza Strip and send its population to Jordan and other neighboring countries.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday insisted on US ownership of the Gaza Strip, but he walked back his threat from a day earlier to withhold aid from Jordan and Egypt if they don't accept Palestinians forcibly transferred from the territory.
At the start of his meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II, Trump told reporters the United States “will take over the Gaza Strip” and relocate its entire population to third countries, including Jordan.
"I believe we'll have a parcel of land in Jordan. I believe we'll have a parcel of land in Egypt,” Trump said.
Faced with pushback from Arab allies, Trump on Monday threatened to cut assistance to Jordan and Egypt — among the top recipients of US aid — if they rebuffed his demand to resettle Gaza’s Palestinian population. He retreated from his threat on Tuesday.
