Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu applauded President Donald Trump's vision of rebuilding Gaza, telling Newsmax on Friday that it's the kind of "fresh" thinking that led to the Abraham Accords during Trump's first presidency.
Netanyahu sat down with Greta Van Susteren, host of "The Record With Greta Van Susteren," for an exclusive interview in New York. Three days removed from the historic press conference with Trump about the future of Gaza and the Palestinian people, Netanyahu laid out the vision and strategy of getting to that point.
"I think it's a fresh new idea. And President Trump always cuts to the chase. And he gets to the point that people don't even think about," Netanyahu said. "It's the kind of thinking that brought us the Abraham Accords, when for 25 years we didn't have a peace treaty. And then we said, 'Well, we have to act differently; we wait for the Palestinians to agree, they'll never agree.' So we went around the Palestinians and made these four peace accords."
Regarding the rebuilding of Gaza, Netanyahu said defeating Hamas, the terrorist group and Iran proxy, is a "precondition for getting the peace."
"As long as Hamas is there, Gaza will revert to the same thing again. Terrorism on their part; we respond. It goes back and forth, back and forth. And, you know, what do you have? Nothing. So we first have to knock out Hamas."
At the White House on Tuesday alongside Netanyahu, Trump unveiled a plan of resettling displaced Gazans and rebuilding the war-torn Gaza into the "Riviera of the Middle East."
"The second thing is, you know, give the people a possibility of leaving. Now, remember, Gaza was closed, not by Israel; it was closed by Egypt. You couldn't leave for years before the war, during the war. It's the only battle zone in the world that is locked," Netanyahu said. "And now the question is, why not let them have a choice? Not forcibly evict them."
Netanyahu stressed Trump's point: "Understand what he's saying: let them relocate in some other place and then rebuild Gaza. And then people will want to come back, let them come back if they disavow terrorism."
As for where to relocate them, Netanyahu said, "That's one of the important questions is, where do you find a country or countries that will take them? But I think the president and his team are working on that. That's very important."
Netanyahu also brushed aside two misconceptions that have surfaced in the days since Trump announced his plan.
"[A] misconception that has been foisted on Trump's vision is that America has to put troops [in Gaza] to defeat Hamas. Give me a break. I mean, we're doing the job. We're doing the heavy lifting. We don't need any American troops. Nor did President Trump suggest that they do that."
In November, Netanyahu estimated that Israeli Defense Forces have killed roughly 20,000 Hamas terrorists.
"Second thing, they said, you're going to use our tax money, U.S. tax money to develop Gaza. He didn't say that either. He thinks there'll be Arab countries who could do it, probably private contractors who could do it. So I think it's worth looking at this," Bibi said. "The first idea that you make a different Gaza, a rebuilt Gaza; rebuilt physically, rebuilt ideologically. I think this is an interesting idea that should be explored. I think it should be pursued."
He went on, "I'm very hopeful. You know, I like that. I like that approach that the president is bringing. You know, why repeat the same thing over and over again, same old, same old, same old? How about a new approach? … Pay attention. Consider this. This could work."
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Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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