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Global Reaction to Trump’s Gaza Strip Takeover Plan

US President Donald J. Trump speaks during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 04 February 2025. (EPA)
US President Donald J. Trump speaks during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 04 February 2025. (EPA)
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Global Reaction to Trump’s Gaza Strip Takeover Plan

US President Donald J. Trump speaks during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 04 February 2025. (EPA)
US President Donald J. Trump speaks during a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 04 February 2025. (EPA)

President Donald Trump said the United States would take over the Gaza Strip after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere. 

Here are some global reactions to the announcement. 

SAUDI ARABIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY 

"Saudi Arabia rejects any attempts to displace the Palestinians from their land. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has affirmed the kingdom's position in 'a clear and explicit manner' that does not allow for any interpretation under any circumstances." 

EGYPT'S FOREIGN MINISTER BADR ABDELATTY 

Abdelatty discussed with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa the importance of moving forward with recovery projects in Gaza without Palestinians leaving the Gaza Strip. 

PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS AND THE PALESTINIAN LEADERSHIP 

Abbas said the Palestinians will not relinquish their land, rights, and sacred sites, and that the Gaza Strip is an integral part of the land of the State of Palestine, along with the West Bank and East Jerusalem. 

SENIOR HAMAS OFFICIAL SAMI ABU ZUHRI 

"Our people in the Gaza Strip will not allow these plans to pass, and what is required is to end the (Israeli) occupation and aggression against our people, not to expel them from their land." 

KREMLIN SPOKESMAN DMITRY PESKOV 

Russia believes a settlement in the Middle East is only possible on the basis of a two-state solution. 

CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY 

"China hopes all parties will take ceasefire and post-conflict governance as an opportunity to bring the Palestinian issue back on the right track of political settlement based on the two-state solution." 

TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER HAKAN FIDAN 

US President Donald Trump's comments on a plan to take over Gaza are "unacceptable". Any plans leaving Palestinians "out of the equation" would lead to more conflict. 

PALESTINE LIBERATION ORGANISATION SECRETARY GENERAL HUSSEIN AL-SHEIKH 

"The Palestinian leadership affirms its firm position that the two-state solution, in accordance with international legitimacy and international law, is the guarantee of security, stability and peace." 

ISLAMIC JIHAD 

"Trump's positions and plans are a dangerous escalation that threaten Arab and regional national security, especially in Egypt and Jordan, which the US administration wants to put in confrontation with the Palestinian people and their rights." 

UK ENVIRONMENT MINISTER STEVE REED 

"The UK government's position ... is that Palestinian civilians must be able to return to their homes and rebuild their lives. For those people, the last ...months have been a living nightmare, and it's important they're able to go home after this to start to rebuild. 

"They'll need a lot of support from the international community to do that, but it's the only way we're going to get to the long-term solution for all of this, and a long-term peace, which is a two-state solution." 

AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER ANTHONY ALBANESE 

"Australia's position is the same as it was this morning, as it was last year. The Australian government supports on a bipartisan basis a two-state solution." 

DEMOCRATIC AND PALESTINIAN-AMERICAN US REPRESENTATIVE RASHIDA TLAIB 

"Palestinians aren't going anywhere. This president can only spew this fanatical (expletive) because of bipartisan support in Congress for funding genocide and ethnic cleansing. It's time for my two-state solution colleagues to speak up." 

US MUSLIM ADVOCACY GROUP COUNCIL ON AMERICAN ISLAMIC RELATIONS 

"Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people, not the United States, and President Trump's call to expel Palestinians from their land is an absolute non-starter." 

"If the Palestinian people were ever somehow forcibly expelled from Gaza, this crime against humanity would spark widespread conflict, put the final nail in the coffin of international law, and destroy what remains of our nation's international image and standing." 

PAUL O'BRIEN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL USA 

"Removing all Palestinians from Gaza is tantamount to destroying them as a people. Gaza is their home. Gaza's death and destruction is a result of the government of Israel killing civilians by the thousands, often with US bombs." 

DEMOCRATIC US SENATOR CHRIS MURPHY 

"He's totally lost it...A US invasion of Gaza would lead to the slaughter of thousands of US troops and decades of war in the Middle East. It's like a bad, sick joke." 

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Arab World

Lebanon Detains Suspect Accused of Importing Equipment for Hezbollah Drone Production

Two Israeli soldiers take cover from a Hezbollah drone near the Lebanon border. (AFP) 
Two Israeli soldiers take cover from a Hezbollah drone near the Lebanon border. (AFP) 
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Lebanon Detains Suspect Accused of Importing Equipment for Hezbollah Drone Production

Two Israeli soldiers take cover from a Hezbollah drone near the Lebanon border. (AFP) 
Two Israeli soldiers take cover from a Hezbollah drone near the Lebanon border. (AFP) 

Lebanese authorities have detained a Lebanese national at the request of French judicial authorities on suspicion of importing electrical equipment from France for Hezbollah, allegedly for use in military activities, particularly the manufacture of drones.

The Internal Security Forces’ Information Branch arrested the suspect, identified as Rabih T., and launched an investigation under the direction of Prosecutor General Ahmad Rami al-Hajj, who is personally overseeing the case.

A senior judicial source said the arrest followed a French judicial request seeking the suspect’s detention and extradition for questioning in connection with a network dismantled in France that is suspected of exporting equipment and devices to Hezbollah.

According to the source, who requested anonymity, the suspect underwent preliminary questioning by the Information Branch under the direct supervision of Prosecutor General al-Hajj and Military Court Commissioner Judge Claude Ghanem.

During the interrogation, he acknowledged importing three shipments of electrical equipment and devices, which he later handed over to an individual he said he knew only by a nickname and who is believed to be affiliated with Hezbollah.

The suspect reportedly told investigators he was unaware that the equipment could be used for military manufacturing purposes.

The case comes amid growing international scrutiny of Hezbollah’s financing channels and its military and technological capabilities, particularly programs linked to the development of unmanned aerial vehicles.

The judicial source said the suspect admitted importing the equipment through maritime shipping as part of larger consignments of electrical supplies for his company.

He told investigators that he owns a business operating in the electrical equipment sector and that the imports were conducted as part of his normal commercial activities.

He denied any knowledge of the equipment’s ultimate use or the purpose for which it had been imported.

The statements are considered significant because investigators suspect the imported devices may have been used in the production of motors or other technical components for Hezbollah drones, a key focus of ongoing investigations in both Lebanon and France.

Alongside the security and judicial inquiries, Lebanese authorities have formally notified France of the suspect’s arrest.

The source said the Public Prosecution Office has requested a complete copy of the French investigation and supporting documents to assist Lebanese authorities in assessing the evidence underlying the French judicial request and determining the accuracy of the allegations.

The Information Branch has completed its preliminary investigation and referred the case to the military prosecutor’s office. Judge Ghanem subsequently filed charges against the suspect and transferred the case to a military investigating judge.

Authorities have also issued a search order aimed at identifying and apprehending a second individual believed to be involved.

Although the military judiciary has formally taken up the case, judicial officials say the investigation remains in its early stages.

The significance of the case, the source said, will largely depend on the evidence provided by French authorities, including details about the imported equipment, its actual end use, and the identities of members of the suspected network in both France and Lebanon.

Investigators are seeking to determine whether the imports were legitimate commercial transactions later diverted to unauthorized uses without the importer’s knowledge, or whether they formed part of a broader network involved in procuring technical components for Hezbollah’s military-development programs — a scenario that would give the case security implications extending well beyond Lebanon.

 

 

 

Arab World

Israeli Minister Says 'All of Lebanon Must Burn' after 4 Soldiers Killed

A photograph taken from the southern Lebanese region of Marjayoun shows smoke rising following an Israeli airstrike on the village of Choukine on June 19, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
A photograph taken from the southern Lebanese region of Marjayoun shows smoke rising following an Israeli airstrike on the village of Choukine on June 19, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
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Israeli Minister Says 'All of Lebanon Must Burn' after 4 Soldiers Killed

A photograph taken from the southern Lebanese region of Marjayoun shows smoke rising following an Israeli airstrike on the village of Choukine on June 19, 2026. (Photo by AFP)
A photograph taken from the southern Lebanese region of Marjayoun shows smoke rising following an Israeli airstrike on the village of Choukine on June 19, 2026. (Photo by AFP)

Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said Friday that "all of Lebanon must burn" after Israel's military announced the deaths of four soldiers there.

"With all due respect to the Americans, Israel must make it clear to the entire world that the blood of our sons and the security of our citizens are not up for bargaining. All of Lebanon must burn," Ben Gvir said in a statement.

Lebanon said 18 people were killed Friday in Israeli airstrikes in the south.

Israel had said it was striking Hezbollah targets overnight and into the morning, while the Iran-backed militant group said it was attacking Israeli forces around the southern town of Nabatieh.

The strikes were the deadliest since Iran and the United States agreed to halt the wider Middle East war on Monday.

The Israeli military, meanwhile, said Lieutenant Colonel Dor Gedalia Ben Simhon had "fallen in combat" along with three other soldiers it did not immediately identify.

In a separate statement it reported a reserve officer was severely wounded "as a result of an explosive drone impact in southern Lebanon,” with four other soldiers lightly injured in the incident.

Arab World

Iraq Shakes Up Top Security and Economic Posts in Surprise Reshuffle

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi during talks with US presidential envoy Tom Barrack in Baghdad, June 16, 2026. (Iraqi Government Media)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi during talks with US presidential envoy Tom Barrack in Baghdad, June 16, 2026. (Iraqi Government Media)
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Iraq Shakes Up Top Security and Economic Posts in Surprise Reshuffle

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi during talks with US presidential envoy Tom Barrack in Baghdad, June 16, 2026. (Iraqi Government Media)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi during talks with US presidential envoy Tom Barrack in Baghdad, June 16, 2026. (Iraqi Government Media)

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has carried out a surprise reshuffle of senior security and economic posts, removing or replacing three prominent figures in moves that come just days after high-level talks with US presidential envoy Tom Barrack in Baghdad.

The changes include the appointment of Bassem al-Badri as head of the National Security Service, replacing Abdul Karim al-Basri, widely known as Abu Ali al-Basri. The veteran security official had long been associated with the Interior Ministry’s elite Falcon Intelligence Cell and has been one of Iraq’s most influential intelligence figures over the past decade.

Abu Ali al-Basri played a central role in directing sensitive intelligence operations and tracking leaders of al-Qaeda, ISIS and members of the former Baath Party. During former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki’s second term from 2010 to 2014, he became highly influential while overseeing critical security matters. The Falcon Intelligence Cell was frequently described as the intelligence body closest to the commander-in-chief’s office during that period.

His successor, al-Badri, has served since 2013 as head of the de-Baathification department within Iraq’s Higher National Commission for Accountability and Justice.

Ali al-Allaq was reportedly relieved of his duties as governor of the Central Bank of Iraq. He is expected to be succeeded by Nizar Nasser, who heads the bank’s Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Office.

Al-Allaq oversaw Iraqi monetary policy through a period marked by major financial and economic challenges. Nasser’s appointment comes as Baghdad faces growing pressure to tighten oversight of the financial sector and strengthen efforts to combat money laundering and illicit financing.

The reshuffle also reportedly includes the dismissal of National Security Adviser Qasim al-Araji and the appointment of Qasim al-Aboudi as a replacement, adding another significant security dimension to the changes affecting key state institutions.

The Iraqi government has yet to issue an official explanation for the decisions or indicate whether they form part of a broader restructuring of the country’s security and economic apparatus.

The moves follow recent talks in Baghdad between al-Zaidi and Barrack that, according to official statements, produced understandings on security, economic cooperation and broader bilateral relations.

Iraqi officials said the discussions yielded agreement on a package of measures aimed at reinforcing the state’s monopoly on arms, advancing the disarmament of armed factions operating outside government control, and providing security guarantees for American companies investing in Iraq.

The developments come ahead of an anticipated summit between al-Zaidi and US President Donald Trump at the White House in mid-July. Baghdad is seeking to strengthen ties with Washington and attract foreign investment while simultaneously reshaping key security and economic portfolios at home.