Displaced Palestinians make their way back to their homes in northern Gaza as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continues to hold, near Gaza city on Monday. Bloomberg
Displaced Palestinians make their way back to their homes in northern Gaza as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continues to hold, near Gaza city on Monday. Bloomberg
Displaced Palestinians make their way back to their homes in northern Gaza as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continues to hold, near Gaza city on Monday. Bloomberg
Displaced Palestinians make their way back to their homes in northern Gaza as the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas continues to hold, near Gaza city on Monday. Bloomberg

‘No one can take our land away,’ Gazans tell Trump after he suggests enclave is 'cleaned out'


Nagham Mohanna
  • English
  • Arabic

Live updates: Follow the latest on Israel-Gaza

Palestinians in Gaza have responded with defiance to a claim by US President Donald Trump that they should leave the enclave and live elsewhere, little more than a week into a fragile ceasefire between militant group Hamas and Israel.

The task to rebuild the strip, pounded for 15 months by Israel, is colossal. More than 90 per cent of Gaza's population of 2.3 million have been displaced, the UN estimates, many of those several times, as Israel issued eviction orders over much of the territory.

The US President suggested Gaza be "cleaned out" and its population housed in Egypt or Jordan "temporarily, or could be long-term", in comments made on Air Force One.

“I’d like Egypt to take people, and I’d like Jordan to take people,” Mr Trump said. “You’re talking about probably a million and a half people, we just clean out that whole thing."

"I'd rather get involved with some of the Arab nations and build housing at a different location where they can maybe live in peace for a change," he said on Saturday. Jordan and Egypt rejected the premise of the idea, reaffirming the need for Palestinians to retain their homeland.

A ceasefire which began on January 19 entered a new phase this week, as Gazans forced to flee south during the conflict were on Monday allowed to return to the north of the enclave, an area previously under siege by Israeli forces.

Foreign security personnel observe displaced Palestinians as they return from the south to their homes in northern Gaza. Reuters
Foreign security personnel observe displaced Palestinians as they return from the south to their homes in northern Gaza. Reuters

"The sight of people returning to their homeland is a powerful message, particularly in response to Trump," said Gaza resident Ali Hassouna, 29. "These individuals are fully aware that they are returning to rubble and destruction, yet they insist on sending a clear message to the world: when you have a rightful claim to something, no one – neither America nor Israel – can take it away.”

The opening up of a return to the north was delayed for two days over a row in which Israel accused Hamas of changing the order of the hostages it released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians from Israeli jails. Mediators resolved the dispute overnight.

For many, returning to their homes, even if destroyed, was an act of resistance. “Let Trump say whatever he wants” said another Gaza resident Mahmoud Zebda, 50. "We didn’t leave Gaza when bombs were falling over our heads – why would we leave now that the war has ended?"

Satellite image analysis by academics from Oregon State University and the City University of New York found almost 60 per cent of buildings in Gaza have been destroyed or damaged since October 2023, when the war began after Hamas launched an attack on southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting about 250, taking them into Gaza. UN analysis estimates that nine in 10 homes are destroyed.

The resulting war has killed more than 47,000 people.

For Palestinians, any attempt to move them from Gaza would evoke dark memories of what the Arab world calls the "Nakba" or "catastrophe" – the mass displacement of Palestinians which led to Israel's creation in 1948.

Naser Mufrej, professor of finance and economics at the Arab American University in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, told The National the cost of rebuilding the Gaza Strip could reach as much as $40 billion to $50 billion, spent over a decade.

But stability and immediate health needs must be met. Under the terms of the ceasefire, 600 lorries can enter each day but they contain mostly food and medical supplies rather than materials to begin clearing the millions of tonnes of rubble left behind.

Gazans described digging with their bare hands to reach the remains of loved ones in bombed-out homes, or finding skeletal remains in areas previously prohibited for entry by Israel.

“The situation in Gaza is incredibly challenging. Basic necessities of life are scarce and we are forced to start from scratch," said Mr Zebda. "However, we cannot do this alone – we need support from others to help us rise again. Our primary hopes are for safety and the opportunity to rebuild Gaza.”

The Arab League likened Mr Trump's latest comments to "ethnic cleansing," while Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, said it would "foil" any such idea.

Mr Hassouna says Gazans must be allowed to reconstruct their homeland on their own terms. “We will rebuild it. This is our land and we are its children. We understand it and it understands us. This land will never accept any nation other than us.”

Key developments

All times UTC 4

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history

4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon

- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.

50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater

1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.  

1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.

1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.

-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.

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The Details

Article 15
Produced by: Carnival Cinemas, Zee Studios
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Sayani Gupta, Zeeshan Ayyub
Our rating: 4/5 

While you're here
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T20 World Cup Qualifier

October 18 – November 2

Opening fixtures

Friday, October 18

ICC Academy: 10am, Scotland v Singapore, 2.10pm, Netherlands v Kenya

Zayed Cricket Stadium: 2.10pm, Hong Kong v Ireland, 7.30pm, Oman v UAE

UAE squad

Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Rameez Shahzad, Darius D’Silva, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zawar Farid, Ghulam Shabber, Junaid Siddique, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Waheed Ahmed, Chirag Suri, Zahoor Khan

Players out: Mohammed Naveed, Shaiman Anwar, Qadeer Ahmed

Players in: Junaid Siddique, Darius D’Silva, Waheed Ahmed

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Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

liverpool youngsters

Ki-Jana Hoever

The only one of this squad to have scored for Liverpool, the versatile Dutchman impressed on his debut at Wolves in January. He can play right-back, centre-back or in midfield.

 

Herbie Kane

Not the most prominent H Kane in English football but a 21-year-old Bristolian who had a fine season on loan at Doncaster last year. He is an all-action midfielder.

 

Luis Longstaff

Signed from Newcastle but no relation to United’s brothers Sean and Matty, Luis is a winger. An England Under-16 international, he helped Liverpool win the FA Youth Cup last season.

 

Yasser Larouci

An 18-year-old Algerian-born winger who can also play as a left-back, Larouci did well on Liverpool’s pre-season tour until an awful tackle by a Sevilla player injured him.

 

Adam Lewis

Steven Gerrard is a fan of his fellow Scouser, who has been on Liverpool’s books since he was in the Under-6s, Lewis was a midfielder, but has been converted into a left-back.

'Munich: The Edge of War'

Director: Christian Schwochow

Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons

Rating: 3/5

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

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Like a Fading Shadow

Antonio Muñoz Molina

Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez

Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)

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Updated: January 28, 2025, 3:50 AM`