Under the ceasefire deal, which came into force on January 19, four Israeli hostages and some 200 Palestinian prisoners were released in joyous scenes on January 25, in the second such exchange so far.
But after 15 months of war, Trump called Gaza a "demolition site" and said he had spoken to Jordan's King Abdullah II about moving the Palestinians out of the territory.
"I would like Egypt to take the people. And I would like Jordan to take people," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, adding that he expects to speak with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Jan. 26.
Most Gazans are Palestinian refugees or their descendants.
For Palestinians, any attempt to move them out of Gaza would evoke grim historical memories of what the Arab world calls the Nakba, or catastrophe - the mass exodus of Palestinians during the creation of Israel 75 years ago.
Egypt has previously warned against any "forced displacement" of Palestinians from Gaza into the Sinai desert, which Sisi said could jeopardize the peace treaty Egypt signed with Israel in 1979.
According to the United Nations, Jordan is already home to about 2.3 million registered Palestinian refugees. "We're talking about a million and a half people, and we're just clearing this whole thing out," Trump said of Gaza, whose population is about 2.4 million, adding that "something has to happen."
"I'd rather we engage with some of the Arab countries and build housing elsewhere where maybe they can live in peace," Trump said, adding that relocating Gazans could be "temporary or long-term."
The vast majority of Gaza's population has been displaced, often repeatedly, as a result of the Gaza war that began after Hamas attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
The new Trump administration has pledged "unwavering support" for Israel, without yet spelling out the details of its Middle East policy.
On 25 January, he confirmed that he had ordered the Pentagon to release a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel that had been blocked by his predecessor, Joe Biden. | BGNES
