Local Palestinians say Trump's depopulation plan for Gaza a barrier to peace
'What he said means more people will be killed,' says Haneen Abdalnabi
Since coming to London, Ont., 15 months ago to flee the war in Gaza, Haneen AbdAlnabi has watched the news wracked with worry about her father and siblings she left behind.
The ceasefire reached last month with Israel gave her hope that Palestinians can now start to think about how to rebuild and return to Gaza, which was left largely destroyed by Israeli air strikes following Hamas's Oct 7, 2023, attack on Israel.
Then Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he wants his country to take ownership of the Gaza Strip and redevelop the territory, with Palestinians who call it home to be displaced elsewhere.
AbdAlnabi said the president's words are a new barrier to reaching a peaceful solution to the conflict.
"I was afraid when he said that," said AbdAlnabi, who has lived in London since the outbreak of the war and has relatives in Gaza. "I told my mom 'That means that he wants to go back to war.' I have a family there. What he said means more people will be killed."
Trump has said that by taking over the devastated territory, the United States could rebuild it for others. Rights groups have said his comments are tantamount to a call for "ethnic cleansing" and a forced expulsion of a people from their homeland.
Trump has before called on Jordan, Egypt and other Arab countries to take in Palestinians temporarily while Gaza is reconstructed.
Egypt and Jordan have both rejected Trump's call to resettle Palestinians on their soil.
Regardless of how the U.S. ownership stake in Gaza would play out, AbdAlnabi said removing her people from their homeland is not a solution.
She said what's needed is a two-state solution that will allow Palestinians who fled Gaza to return and rebuild.
"I want to see my people to live in peace, I want them to heal," she said. "They are traumatized. I myself am traumatized."
Wesam Nofal, who also now lives in London after fleeing the war, fought to get family members out of Gaza while the war raged. She said Trump's comments aren't worthy of the high office he holds.
"I have no comments other than this man should be out of the White House," she said. "I have Israeli friends who are totally shocked by this announcement. I don't want to see this conflict becoming more viscous."
Speaking Wednesday in response to Trump's comments, Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said Canada remains committed to a two-state solution "where Israelis and Palestinians can live securely within internationally recognised borders."
With files from The Associated Press