Benjamin Netanyahu has suggested moving ahead with Donald Trump’s plan to clear out Palestinians from Gaza, as Israel received a previously blocked shipment of heavy bombs.
President Trump’s proposal to transfer the Palestinian population out of Gaza and redevelop it under US ownership has been criticised by Palestinians, human rights groups, regional powers and US allies, but Mr Netanyahu said on Sunday it is “the only viable plan to enable a different future”.
The Israeli prime minister also denied claims it was ethnic cleansing.
Donald Trump speaks to reporters upon arrival in West Palm Beach, Florida. Pic: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque
Ever since the UN General Assembly voted for Palestine to be split into an Arab state and a Jewish state, against significant opposition in 1947, the issue of land, and who it belongs to, has been one of the most divisive in the region.
Mr Netanyahu said that any emigration from Gaza should be “voluntary” but rights groups and critics warned the plan amounted to coercion given Israel had razed the enclave.
The Israeli PM said he and Mr Trump had a “common strategy” for Gaza and that the US president’s plan was “right on the dot”.
Speaking to reporters in Florida on Sunday, Mr Trump said: “I told Bibi [Benjamin Netanyahu] you do whatever you want.”
He added:”[It] will be up to Israel what the next step is, in consultation with me.”
Palestinians sit among the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israel as politicians try to decide the fate of the enclave. Pic: Reuters/Hatem Khaled
The comments raise further concerns for the fragile Gaza ceasefire, which came under threat last week.
Hamas initially said it would not be releasing the hostages scheduled to be sent back to Israel over worries about the supply of vitally needed aid – but later backtracked.
‘Peace through strength’ – with heavy bombs
It comes as Israel has received a shipment of heavy MK-84 bombs from the US, initially blocked by Joe Biden, that Mr Trump greenlit.
Mr Trump said he lifted the block because he believed in “peace through strength”.
The MK-84 is an unguided 907kg bomb that can rip through thick concrete and metal, creating a wide blast radius.
An aviation ordnance worker moves the heavy bombs. File pic: Reuters/Jim Hampshire/US Navy photo
The Biden administration refused to clear the weapons for export over fears of what they could do in the densely populated Gaza Strip.
Mr Trump said on Sunday: “They contracted for the weapons a long time ago with the Biden administration, and then Biden wouldn’t deliver the weapons. But I look at it differently. I say peace through strength.”
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A Palestinian man pushes a child in a wheelchair past destroyed buildings. Pic: Reuters/Hatem Khaled
Phase two of ceasefire deal
Israel’s security cabinet is set to meet on Monday to discuss the second phase of the ceasefire agreement which brought to an end around 16 months of fighting, triggered by the 7 October 2023 attack.
More than 48,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count.
At least 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 taken hostage when Hamas launched its massacre in Israel.
A ceasefire agreed last month managed to finally pause fighting, but its first phase ends in two weeks.
Negotiations on the second phase were meant to begin two weeks ago.
If successful, it would continue the release of hostages in exchange for more Palestinian prisoners as well as a lasting truce and the withdrawal of Israeli forces.
Mr Trump’s special Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, told Fox News that “phase two is absolutely going to begin” and he had “very productive” calls on Sunday with Mr Netanyahu and officials from Egypt and Qatar, which serve as mediators, about continuing talks this week.
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‘Trump is greatest friend Israel has ever had’
Three Palestinians killed
Meanwhile, over the weekend the Hamas-run Gaza interior ministry blamed Israel for the deaths of three Palestinian police officers in Rafah.
It said the officers had been deployed to secure the entry of aid trucks and this was a clear violation of the ceasefire.
Israel’s military said it had attacked several armed individuals moving towards Israeli forces.