A blockage? A solution made in Trump. Pour “do the housework” in Gaza, the American president considered on Saturday January 25 moving the inhabitants of the territory to Egypt and Jordan, where the truce begins its second week of implementation, with the release in two stages of seven Israeli hostages and several hundred Palestinian prisoners. A proposal that comes as Israel has neutralized the return of Gazan residents to the north of the territory, as long as civilian hostage Arbel Yehud has not been released.
After fifteen months of war triggered by the October 7 attack, Donald Trump compared the territory to a “demolition site” and said he had spoken to King Abdullah II of Jordan about the situation, adding that he would do the same on Sunday with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi.
“We are talking about 1.5 million people, and we are simply cleaning up that. You know, over the centuries, this site has experienced many conflicts. And I don't know, something must be happening, Donald Trump told reporters aboard the presidential plane Air Force One. “I would rather get involved with some Arab nations and build housing somewhere else where maybe they could live in peace for once,” added the president. According to him, the displacement of Gaza residents could be “temporary or long-term”.
Resumption of bomb deliveries
Donald Trump, who often boasted during his first presidential term that Israel “never had a better friend in the White House,” also confirmed having released a delivery of 2,000 pounds (907 kg) bombs for its ally.
The administration of former Democratic President Joe Biden last year suspended deliveries of such weapons, dropped by plane, both precise and with great destructive power, believing that they would cause a “great human tragedy”. Donald Trump had exerted intense pressure on both camps to conclude a ceasefire agreement before his inauguration on January 20.
-As part of the deal, Israeli soldiers Daniella Gilboa, Karina Ariev, Liri Albag and Naama Levy, aged 19 to 20, were released on Saturday and taken to Israel, where they were reunited with their parents for long hugs including The army released photos. In the evening, relatives of hostages and their supporters demonstrated in Tel Aviv to demand the return of the other hostages, 87 people including 34 dead according to the army, out of a total of 251 kidnapped on October 7, 2023.
33 hostages against 1,900 prisoners
In Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, a crowd waving Palestinian flags jubilantly welcomed some of the approximately 200 Palestinians just released. Carried on the shoulders by residents, still dressed in prison uniform, they found their loved ones between hugs and tears.
A first exchange of three Israeli hostages for 90 Palestinian prisoners took place on the first day of the truce, January 19, in the devastated Palestinian territory plunged into a serious humanitarian crisis. In total, the agreement between the two parties provides for the exchange of 33 hostages for the release of 1,900 prisoners.
