DUBAI (Reuters) – Iran categorically rejects a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump to relocate Palestinians from Gaza, foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said on Thursday.
On Tuesday, Trump said the U.S. would take over the war-ravaged Gaza Strip and develop it economically after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere, actions that would shatter decades of U.S. policy toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
“The plan to clear Gaza and relocate Palestinians to neighbouring countries is considered a continuation of the Zionist regime’s (Israel) plan to completely wipe out the Palestinian people,” Baghaei wrote on social media website X.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Trump’s proposal is “a remarkable idea” that should be pursued as it will create “a different future for everyone.”
“This idea is categorically rejected and condemned due to its clear contradiction with established principles and rules of international law and human rights,” Baghaei said in his statement.
Baghaei called upon the United Nations Security Council and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to take a clear stance explicitly rejecting Trump’s announcement.
On Wednesday, a senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran disagreed with any displacement of Gazans, but viewed this issue as a separate matter from potential Iran-U.S. talks meant to lift sanctions in exchange for Iran curbing its nuclear programme.
(Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
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