WASHINGTON — More than 70 national and local civil rights, faith-based organisations and advocacy groups urged President Donald Trump to abandon his proposal to “take over” the Gaza Strip and forcibly relocate its Palestinian population.
In a letter sent to the president on Thursday, signatories expressed “deep concern” over Trump’s recent proposals advocating for the expulsion of nearly 2 million Palestinians from their homeland. They urged the administration to instead build on previous diplomatic efforts that led to a ceasefire in Gaza rather than pursuing policies that could destabilize the region.
“Put simply, the ethnic cleansing and U occupation of Gaza would spark a massive backlash in the Arab and Muslim world, drain American resources by entangling the US military in new forever wars, and make the peaceful establishment of a Palestinian state impossible, leading to even more conflict in the region,” they wrote in the letter, which was shared publicly on Friday.
They also warned that Trump’s plan would undermine the progress he has made when he helped secure the ceasefire deal, which came into effect Jan.19, pausing Israel’s 15-month military assault that has killed more than 48,200 people, mostly women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.
Among the signatories were the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), American Muslims for Palestine (AMP), CODEPINK, Peace Action and the US Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO), along with numerous organizations and advocacy groups.
“Gaza is not a ‘big real estate site’ that can go to the highest bidder,” the letter stated. “It is a land that millions of Palestinians have called home for generations.”
The letter urged Trump to work with regional partners to rebuild Gaza without displacing its residents.
“We urge your administration to abandon the expulsion and occupation proposal. You should instead work with the Arab and Muslim world to develop a realistic proposal to rebuild Gaza without expelling Palestinians from their ancestral homes,” they said.
The letter also outlined a broader peace agenda with key goals, including a call for a permanent ceasefire, humanitarian rebuilding of Gaza, an international redevelopment fund for Palestinian statehood, full US recognition of a Palestinian state and an end to Israel’s occupation and discriminatory policies.
Trump said at a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week that the US would “take over” Gaza and resettle Palestinians elsewhere under an extraordinary redevelopment plan that he claimed could turn the enclave into “the Riviera of the Middle East.”
His proposal was met with widespread condemnations from Palestinians, Muslim and Arab countries, and many other nations across the world.
Israel has maintained a blockade on Gaza for years, effectively turning it into the world’s largest open-air prison.
According to the UN, nearly 2 million of the million residents in Gaza have been displaced since the start of the war after an attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, 2023. The population in Gaza faces dire shortages of food, water and medicine. — AA
