Gaza City: Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem has welcomed United States President Donald Trump’s apparent retreat from his proposed permanent displacement of more than two million Palestinians from Gaza.
The statement by the Hamas official came after Trump said on Wednesday that “nobody is expelling any Palestinians from Gaza” in response to a question during a meeting in the White House with Ireland’s Taoiseach Micheal Martin.
“If US President Trump’s statements represent a retreat from any idea of displacing the people of the Gaza Strip, they are welcomed,” Qassem said in the statement.
“We call for this position to be reinforced by obligating the Israeli occupation to implement all the terms of the ceasefire agreements,” he added.
Trump sent shockwaves throughout the Middle East and beyond last month when he proposed a US takeover of Gaza and suggested that the war-torn territory’s Palestinian population be permanently displaced to live in neighbouring countries.
Egypt, which neighbours Gaza and Israel, also said it appreciated Trump’s Wednesday remarks.
“This position reflects an understanding of the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the importance of finding fair, sustainable solutions to the Palestinian issue,” the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday. Trump’s apparent reversal came after Arab foreign ministers met in Qatar on Wednesday with the US’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff to discuss reconstruction for Gaza.
Foreign ministers from Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and the secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization were present at the meeting, according to a statement from Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The Arab foreign ministers discussed the Gaza reconstruction plan, which was approved at the Arab League Summit held in Cairo on March 4, 2025,” the ministry said.