[🇧🇩] Israel and Hamas war in Gaza-----Can Bangladesh be a peace broker?

[Saif]

Trump's plan for ethnic cleansing of Gaza

Early this month US President Donald Trump announced that the US would take over the Gaza Strip and develop the land as "the Riviera of the Middle East" and send 2.3 million Palestinians elsewhere but not to the US as he offered the Afrikaners (white South Africans) to move to the US fr

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Trump's plan for ethnic cleansing of Gaza
Muhammad Mahmood
Published :
Feb 22, 2025 21:37
Updated :
Feb 22, 2025 21:37

US President Donald Trump and US Vice President JD Vance meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington on last February 4 –Reuters file photo

Early this month US President Donald Trump announced that the US would take over the Gaza Strip and develop the land as "the Riviera of the Middle East" and send 2.3 million Palestinians elsewhere but not to the US as he offered the Afrikaners (white South Africans) to move to the US from South Africa. He also clearly indicated that the Palestinians would have no right to return to Gaza but people from all over the world would be able to move to Gaza.

He declined to rule out sending US troops to make it happen. Trump further clarified his position and said that the US would seize Gaza as its own territory. According to the Wahington Post (February 5) for Trump, Gaza becomes the latest target of US manifest destiny. Trump's plan reminds us of the dark days of colonial conquest.

Trump also indicated where he wanted the Palestinians to move "I think I could make a deal with Jordan. I could make a deal with Egypt". Possibly Trump in his mind had some Arab leaders collaboration with the British enabling the British and the French to colonise the Levant on the basis of the secret Sykes-Picot agreement of 1916. In particular, the colonisation of Palestine by the British facilitated to give shape to the Balfour Declaration of 1917 in creating the racist apartheid colonial settler state called Israel in Palestine by displacing Palestinians in 1948.

Trump's hostility toward Palestine and Palestinians is also nothing new. During his first term, he closed the PLO's office in Washington, D.C. and stopped funding for UNRWA, the agency that supports Palestinian refugees. Trump moved the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

In fact, Israel was forged out of the forced expulsion of Palestinians from their land which resulted in more than 700,000 Palestinians forced out of their homes by Israeli forces. Israel passed laws it still uses to confiscate their property. On last Monday (February 17), Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the creation of a directorate in the Defence Ministry tasked with overseeing the implementation of the plan announced by US President to ethnically cleanse Gaza.

More importantly, Jordanian King Abdulla II throughout the US backed Israeli genocide kept the Israeli supply line in full operation through Jordan when Israel faced supply disruptions from other Arab countries like Yemen. He also joined Israel to shoot down Iranian missiles fired at Israel in retaliation for Israel's assassinations of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. King Abdullah II and his betrayal of the Palestinians is apparent to all. Both Egypt and Jordan maintained Israel's blockade of Gaza and worked strenuously to demobilise the widespread opposition within their own countries.

Also, in occupied West Bank, the Israeli armed forces have instituted widespread closures, bombed Jenin refugee camp and destroyed residential buildings and public infrastructure. The Israeli defence minister said "Jenin is only the beginning" and there will be "more operations in other parts of the West Bank".

President Trump hosted Jordan's King Abdullah II at the White House on February 11 and renewed his suggestions that Gaza could be emptied of residents, controlled by the U.S. and redeveloped as a tourist area, an idea originally floated by Jared Kushner. Jordan along with other Arab states including Egypt, however, has rejected Trump's plan to relocate civilians from Gaza fearing that would destabilise Egypt and Jordan.

Trump announced his plan alongside his ally, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who praised Trump's proposal as "revolutionary and creative". He also praised Trump as "the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House" and then said "it is worth paying attention to this" idea, adding further that it was "something that could change history".

In fact, this has always been an Israeli aim to depopulate Gaza of Palestinians. Many Israeli officials have called for the same plan, in exactly the same language for over a year. Trump, in effect, was merely stating openly the actual policy of the Israeli government. This is just the latest iteration of efforts aimed at ethnically cleansing Palestinians from their homeland. Trump's remarks suggest his foreign policy on Palestine will remain largely unchanged from his predecessor's.

On February 16 the Israeli finance minister raised the possibility of the imminent implementation of Trump's plan for Gaza. Last week US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem and both men pledged to work together to implement Trump's plan for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza. Also, from the Israeli perspective displacing Palestinians from Gaza would put an end to Palestinian statehood.

Many leaders across the world have also warned that displacing Palestinians from Gaza would destabilise the entire Middle East. Trump's comments could derail the attempts to bring about an end to fighting in Gaza.

Meanwhile, the UN has warned that any forced displacement of civilians from occupied territory is strictly prohibited under international law and "tantamount to ethnic cleansing". UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres also said, "any forced displacement of people is tantamount to ethnic cleansing". Germany's chancellor Olaf Scholz also strongly criticised Trump's plan calling it "absurd".

Responding to Trump's plan, Human Rights Watch stated that it "would move the US from being complicit in war crimes to direct perpetration of atrocities". The executive director of Amnesty International USA added that "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".

Hamas also declared that Trump's remarks were "absurd' and reflected "deep ignorance of Palestine and the region". Hamas also made it clear that Gaza is an integral part of occupied Palestinian land. Hamas fighters remain in operational position even after 16 months of fighting and still overseeing the civilian administration in Gaza.

Mahmoud Abbas, Head of Palestinian Authority in the West Bank also strongly rejected any plans to displace Palestinians from Gaza, saying, "We will not allow any infringement of the rights of our people, which we have struggled for decades and made great sacrifices to achieve." The US President's plan to take over Gaza and displace its Palestinian residents has been opposed by Arab states as well.

Trump's call for depopulating Gaza of Palestinians and to relocate them elsewhere permanently aims at paving the way to fulfil the Israeli dream to create Eretz Yisrael (the greater Israel) which involves annexing all the Palestinian territories and expand borders into Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

Trump's Gaza Plan violates numerous principles of international law. Already the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. This is the first time that Netanyahu has been indicted by an international court for the ongoing war on Gaza.

Many already are branding Trump's Gaza plan a second Balfour Declaration. Trump's Gaza plan will also set a very dangerous precedent and would encourage authoritarian leaders around the world to do similarly and contribute to a global breakdown of peace and security.

According to many experts in international law his plan to permanently move millions of Palestinians out of Gaza constitute ethnic cleansing which could amount to a war crime or crime against humanity. In fact, international law is very clear on the forced deportation or transfer of a civilian population. It is a violation of international humanitarian law, a war crime, and a crime against humanity. The mass deportation of civilians from occupied territory was recognised as a war crime under the Geneva Convention of 1949.

It is the responsibility of all governments around the world to condemn this dangerous plan, and do everything possible to halt it. Palestinians should be allowed to return home in Gaza, receive help in rebuilding Gaza, and live in peace. Meanwhile, Arab and international solidarity with the Palestinian people is getting stronger by the days which will help further strengthen Palestinian resistance against Israeli aggression and occupation.​

 

[Saif]

Bangladesh also walks out during Israeli speech: MoFA

The foreign ministry has said some quarters have been misinterpreting an instant walkout by some delegates from the speech of the Israeli delegate at the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety on February 18, in Marrakesh, Morocco. “This is to inform you that the Bangladesh delegat

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Bangladesh also walks out during Israeli speech: MoFA
BSS
Published :
Feb 22, 2025 21:26
Updated :
Feb 22, 2025 21:26

The foreign ministry has said some quarters have been misinterpreting an instant walkout by some delegates from the speech of the Israeli delegate at the 4th Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety on February 18, in Marrakesh, Morocco.

“This is to inform you that the Bangladesh delegation was also among the countries that walked out,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) in a statement on Friday.

Bangladesh's position on the Palestinian cause and Israeli genocide and other repressions of the Palestinians is well known, said the foreign ministry in its statement.

The ministry requested all concerned to refrain from spreading misinformation about this particular situation.​

 

[Saif]

Gaza ceasefire gravely endangered

Hamas yesterday said Israel has gravely endangered a five-week-old Gaza truce by delaying the release of Palestinian prisoners under the deal because of the manner it has freed Israeli hostages.

www.thedailystar.net

Gaza ceasefire gravely endangered
Says Hamas after Israel delays release of over 600 Palestinian prisoners

​

• Israel deploying tank division in a West Bank city​
• 40,000 Palestinians displaced from Jenin, other refugee camps​

Hamas yesterday said Israel has gravely endangered a five-week-old Gaza truce by delaying the release of Palestinian prisoners under the deal because of the manner it has freed Israeli hostages.

The first phase of the truce ends early in March and details of a planned subsequent phase have not been agreed.

With tensions again hanging over the deal -- which halted more than 15 months of offensive -- Israel yesterday announced an expansion of military operations in the occupied West Bank.

The military said a tank division will be sent in to the West Bank city of Jenin, the first such deployment to the territory in 20 years.

Since the Gaza ceasefire's first phase began on January 19, Hamas has released 25 living Israeli hostages in ceremonies before crowds at various locations in Gaza.

Armed masked fighters escort the captives onto stages adorned with slogans. The hostages have spoken and waved in what Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called "humiliating ceremonies".

The Red Cross has previously appealed to "all parties" for the swaps to be carried out in a "dignified and private" manner.

In the seventh such transfer, Hamas released six Israeli captives on Saturday but Israel put off the planned release of more than 600 Palestinian prisoners in exchange.

Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said postponing the release exposes "the entire agreement to grave danger".

Naim said the mediators, "especially the Americans", must pressure Israel's government "to implement the agreement as it is and immediately release our prisoners."

Alongside the Gaza offensive -- which displaced almost the entire population of 2.4 million -- violence has also soared in the West Bank.

Yesterday, Israel's military said "a tank division will operate in Jenin" as part of "expanding" operations in the area, where the military began a major raid against Palestinian militants just after the Gaza truce began.

The United Nations has said the military activities have led to "forced displacement" of 40,000 Palestinians from Jenin and other refugee camps.

Defence Minister Israel Katz said he has told troops "to prepare for a prolonged presence in the cleared camps for the coming year.​

 

[Saif]

Hamas says Israel’s claim on hostages’ handover ceremony is pretext to evade its obligations

Hamas on Sunday condemned Israel’s decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, saying its claim that the hostages’ handover ceremonies are “humiliating” was false and a pretext to evade Israel’s obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreemen

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Hamas says Israel’s claim on hostages’ handover ceremony is pretext to evade its obligations
REUTERS
Published :
Feb 23, 2025 16:29
Updated :
Feb 23, 2025 16:29

Palestinian Hamas militants stand guard on the day of the handover of hostages, including those held in Gaza since the deadly October 7 2023 attack, to members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as part of a ceasefire and a hostages-prisoners swap deal between Hamas and Israel, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, February 22, 2025. Photo : REUTERS/Hatem Khaled/Files

Hamas on Sunday condemned Israel’s decision to postpone the release of Palestinian prisoners and detainees, saying its claim that the hostages’ handover ceremonies are “humiliating” was false and a pretext to evade Israel’s obligations under the Gaza ceasefire agreement.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Netanyahu’s decision reflects a deliberate attempt to disrupt the agreement, represents a clear violation of its terms, and shows the occupation’s lack of reliability in implementing its obligations,” Ezzat El Rashq, a member of the Hamas political bureau, said in a statement.

Israel said earlier it was delaying the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners it had planned to free the day before until Hamas met its conditions, underscoring the fragility of the Gaza ceasefire accord.

Netanyahu’s office released a statement in the early hours of Sunday saying that Israel was waiting to deliver the 620 Palestinian prisoners and detainees “until the release of the next hostages has been assured, and without the humiliating ceremonies.”

Hamas’ El Rashq said the ceremonies do not include any insult to the hostages, “but rather reflect the humane and dignified treatment of them”, adding that the “real insult” is what the Palestinian prisoners are subjected to during the release process.

The Palestinian militant group official cited the hands’ tying of the Palestinian prisoners and detainees and their blindfolding and threatening them not to hold any celebrations for their release as examples of their humiliation at the hands of Israeli authorities.

Hamas has made hostages appear on stage in front of crowds and sometimes speak before they were handed over. Coffins with hostage remains have also been carried through crowds.

Israel’s announcement, which also accused Hamas of repeatedly violating the month-old ceasefire, came after the Palestinian militant group on Saturday handed over six hostages from Gaza as part of an exchange arranged under the truce.

Hamas freed six hostages from Gaza on Saturday in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners and detainees.

The six hostages freed on Saturday were the last living Israeli captives due to be handed over during the first phase of the ceasefire. The bodies of four dead Israeli hostages were to be released next week.​

 

[Saif]

Gaza ceasefire faces hurdle but not collapsing yet: analysts

Gaza’s fragile five-week truce faces a major hurdle with Israel’s refusal to release Palestinian prisoners, but analysts say the ceasefire is likely to hold as Washington pushes for its extension.

www.newagebd.net

Gaza ceasefire faces hurdle but not collapsing yet: analysts
Agence France-Presse . Jerusalem 25 February, 2025, 22:49

Displaced Palestinians carry some belongings as they walk to safer areas amid a weeks-long offensive of the Israeli military at the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday. | AFP photo

Gaza’s fragile five-week truce faces a major hurdle with Israel’s refusal to release Palestinian prisoners, but analysts say the ceasefire is likely to hold as Washington pushes for its extension.

‘It’s actually the most complicated crisis since the beginning of the ceasefire,’ Palestinian affairs expert Michael Milshtein of Tel Aviv University’s Moshe Dayan Centre said.

While previous obstacles have tested the truce — including Hamas’s threat to stop releasing hostages over alleged violations of the ceasefire including insufficient aid entering Gaza — Milshtein emphasised that ‘this time, it is even more complicated.’

On Saturday, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu suspended the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, after militants freed six hostages.

He condemned what he described as ‘humiliating ceremonies’ by Hamas to free hostages in Gaza.

Palestinian militants had in the weeks prior paraded Israeli captives and later displayed black coffins containing deceased hostages on stage, sparking outrage across Israel.

Netanyahu went further on Sunday, warning that Israel was ready to ‘resume intense fighting at any moment’ in the Palestinian territory.

Hamas, in turn, warned that Israel’s decision jeopardises the ‘entire agreement’, stopping short of promising a return to fighting.

Yet, despite the escalating rhetoric, both sides appear intent on maintaining the ceasefire, according to Milshtein.

‘Hamas really wants to implement phase one of the deal because on Saturday, the IDF military is meant to start leaving the Philadelphi Corridor,’ he noted, referring to a strategic strip that runs along Gaza’s border with Egypt.

For Israel, Mairav Zonszein, an analyst from the International Crisis Group, said that Netanyahu was also stuck ‘in the same quagmire of trying to get hostages out while trying to get rid of the people holding those hostages’.

‘I think Netanyahu is kind of doing what he does best, which is dragging things out, buying time, trying to see if he can leverage withholding these prisoners,’ she said.

Zonszein noted that Israeli public opinion is putting pressure on Netanyahu to uphold the ceasefire, particularly as more hostages are seen ‘coming out alive’.

Some analysts suggest that Israel’s tougher stance is a calculated negotiating tactic ahead of upcoming talks for the second phase of truce.

‘I don’t think the ceasefire will collapse, it’s not in Netanyahu’s interest to have it collapse particularly as hostages are still being held in Gaza,’ said Sanam Vakil, director of UK-based think tank Chatham House’s Middle East and North Africa program.

‘What we are witnessing now is political hardball, with them Israel trying to up the ante, or increase pressure on Hamas’ ahead of the next phase, she said.

Phase two was ‘always going to be the hardest phase of the negotiations, made worse by the US position and posturing and by the fact there is no coherent Arab plan,’ she said.

Trump has stirred controversy by openly suggesting that the United States should take control of Gaza and expel its 2.4 million inhabitants to Egypt and Jordan.

But in recent days he has toned down his view and on Wednesday his special envoy Steve Witkoff is due to arrive in Israel to push forward the phase two talks.

‘I think the key to this is the Americans, they will determine what takes place next,’ said Alan Mendoza, executive director of the UK-based Henry Jackson Society.

‘Trump was the main factor in getting Netanyahu to agree to ceasefire,’ he said, noting that the deal was on the table previously but ‘Trump pushed it and both the Israelis and Hamas have agreed to its terms.’

Despite Israel demanding Gaza be completely demilitarised and Hamas removed, while the militant group insisting on remaining in the territory after the war, Mendoza said that if Trump throws his weight behind phase two ‘then it will happen.’

‘It’s a tough negotiation round and the odds are we will not be able to agree on a stage two plan but if the Arab states buck up… and take more of an interest given Trump’s Gaza Riveria plans — there’s a possibility we could do it.’​

 

[Saif]

Hamas to hand over four Israeli hostages’ bodies

Hamas will hand over the bodies of four Israeli hostages on Thursday in what it said would be an exchange for more than 600 Palestinian prisoners, capping the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire deal...

www.newagebd.net

Hamas to hand over four Israeli hostages’ bodies
Agence France-Presse . Gaza City 26 February, 2025, 21:32

A woman carries bags as she walks on rubble at the Nur Shams camp for Palestinian refugees near Tulkarem, where Israeli forces allowed residents to retrieve belongings after issuing reported demolition notifications for several houses, amid a weeks-long offensive in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday. | AFP photo

Hamas will hand over the bodies of four Israeli hostages on Thursday in what it said would be an exchange for more than 600 Palestinian prisoners, capping the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire deal.

The United States said talks were on track for a second phase of the ceasefire deal that has largely held but whose complexity and long-drawn-out implementation have highlighted its fragility.

In Israel on Wednesday, thousands of mourners gathered for the funeral of Shiri Bibas and her sons, who were killed in captivity in Gaza and had become symbols of the country’s hostage ordeal.

The ceasefire has largely halted the Israel-Hamas war sparked by the October 7, 2023 attack, and has seen 25 hostages released alive so far in exchange for hundreds of prisoners.

‘Mediators have informed Hamas that the (hostage-prisoner) exchange will take place on Thursday... Hamas and other resistance factions will hand over four bodies of Israeli captives, and in return, Israel will release more than 600 Palestinian detainees,’ a Hamas official told AFP.

Another senior Hamas official said the ‘exchange will happen simultaneously’.

Israel has reached an agreement with mediators for the return of the bodies of four Israeli hostages held in Gaza, the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.

In Washington, US President Donald Trump’s top envoy on the Middle East said Israeli representatives were en route to talks on the next phase of the ceasefire deal.

‘We’re making a lot of progress. Israel is sending a team right now as we speak,’ Steve Witkoff told an event for the American Jewish Committee.

‘It’s either going to be in Doha or in Cairo, where negotiations will begin again with the Egyptians and the Qataris,’ he said.

This first phase is supposed to end on Saturday, but negotiations planned for the rest of the process—which were to begin in early February—have not yet started.

Hamas has said it is ready to release all the remaining hostages ‘in one go’ during the second phase.

On Sunday, the group accused Israel of endangering the Gaza truce by delaying the release of more than 600 Palestinian prisoners.

Israel said it had concerns over how the hostages have been freed, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu describing the handovers as ‘humiliating ceremonies’.

Israel has yet to comment on whether it will release more than 600 Palestinian prisoners on Thursday.

Minute’s silence -

The Israeli parliament held a minute of silence to mourn the deaths of three members of the Bibas family, as well as other victims of the October 2023 attack on Israel.

‘Yesterday, the funeral of Oded Lifshitz took place; today, the funeral of Shiri, Kfir and Ariel Bibas is taking place. We remember all the victims of October 7. We remember, and we will not forget,’ said speaker Amir Ohana.

Since the ceasefire took effect on January 19, Hamas has released 25 living hostages in public ceremonies across Gaza, where masked, armed fighters have escorted the captives onto stages covered in slogans.

Israel has released more than 1,100 Palestinian prisoners.

The International Committee of the Red Cross has urged all parties to carry out prisoner and hostage swaps ‘in a dignified and private manner’.

In Israel, the prisoners are largely viewed as ‘terrorists’ for the violent attacks they have carried out against civilians and security forces.

For Palestinians, however, the releases are viewed as long-delayed justice for prisoners regarded as symbols of resistance against Israeli occupation.

The two sides have accused each other of violating the ceasefire, but it has so far largely held.

Israel vowed to destroy Hamas after its 2023 attack, the deadliest in the country’s history, and has made bringing back all hostages seized that day a central war aim.

The attack that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of more than 1,200 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Israel’s retaliation in Gaza has killed more than 48,000 people, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, figures that the United Nations considers credible.

Bibas family funeral -

In Israel, thousands of mourners gathered for the funeral procession of Shiri Bibas and her sons Kfir and Ariel.

‘Shiri, I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you all,’ freed Israeli hostage Yarden Bibas said in his eulogy at the funeral of his wife and two sons.

The Israeli national anthem was played as the funeral convoy passed through the crowd of mourners in the central city of Rishon LeZion, where the remains of the three hostages had been prepared for burial.

‘The Bibas family, I think, is like the symbol of everything that happened to us since October 7,’ said retired teacher Ayala Schlesinger Avidov, 72, visibly emotional as she spoke to AFP.

‘The two babies and the mother that did nothing to the world and were murdered in cold blood.’​

 

[Saif]

Start talks for next phase of Gaza truce

Hamas yesterday called on Israel to enter negotiations for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire after the group handed over the bodies of four hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

www.thedailystar.net

Start talks for next phase of Gaza truce
Hamas calls on Israel after prisoner exchange

Hamas yesterday called on Israel to enter negotiations for the next phase of the Gaza ceasefire after the group handed over the bodies of four hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

The swap, undertaken under cover of night, was the last in an initial series agreed under the terms of the fragile truce, which took effect on January 19 and largely halted the war in Gaza.

Under the first phase of the deal, Hamas freed 25 living hostages and returned to Israel the bodies of eight others, some of them dual nationals.

Israel, in return, was expected to free around 1,900 Palestinian prisoners, among them women and minors, in staggered releases.

Netanyahu instructs his delegation to depart for Cairo to continue truce talks

The Palestinian Prisoners Club advocacy group said Israel had freed 596 prisoners in exchange for the bodies yesterday.

It said 46 prisoners were yet to be released to complete the swap -- "all women and minors from Gaza" who were arrested after the war began.

Negotiations for a second phase of the deal, which is meant to lead to a permanent end to the war, have yet to begin.

"We have cut off the path before the enemy's false justifications, and it has no choice but to start negotiations for the second phase," Hamas said on Telegram.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday instructed his negotiation delegation to depart for Cairo yesterday to continue Gaza ceasefire talks, his office said.​

 

[Saif]

Trump shares bizarre AI video of a rebuilt Gaza with Musk, Netanyahu

The 33-second clip remained on Trump's accounts without denial or retraction hours after the initial posting on Tuesday night.

www.thedailystar.net

Trump shares bizarre AI video of a rebuilt Gaza with Musk, Netanyahu
Trump shares AI video of rebuilt Gaza

Collage made with grabs from the video/Collected

US President Donald Trump's official social media accounts posted an apparently AI-generated video depicting war-ravaged Gaza rebuilt into a seaside resort, replete with a towering golden statue of himself.

The video, which racked up more than 29 million views on Instagram and was shared thousands of times on Trump's Truth Social network by Wednesday afternoon, prompted some commenters to question whether the president's accounts had been hacked.

Google News LinkFor all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
The 33-second clip remained on Trump's accounts without denial or retraction hours after the initial posting on Tuesday night.

The video "Gaza 2025 What's Next?" opens with people on a rubble-strewn street emerging from a tunnel onto a beach with palm trees and yachts.

Trump has floated the idea of a US takeover of Gaza under which its Palestinian population would be relocated -- a proposal met with global condemnation.

He later appeared to soften his plan, saying he was only recommending the idea, and conceding that the leaders of Jordan and Egypt -- the proposed destinations for relocated Gazans -- had rejected any effort to move Palestinians against their will.

In the social media clip, the soundtrack includes lyrics such as "Donald's coming to set you free, bringing the light for all to see", and "Feast and dance, the deal is done, Trump Gaza number one".

Seemingly AI-generated renditions of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sip cocktails in swimsuits by a pool, while other shots show what appears to be Elon Musk dancing under a shower of cash on the beach.

A larger-than-life golden statue of Trump is also featured.

Social media users reacted with both support and criticism, but many questioned whether Trump himself had posted the montage.

AFP did not find any evidence the video had been shared online before it was posted to Trump's Truth Social and Instagram accounts.

- Dancers and beards -

One scene closely resembles an AI-generated image of Trump and Netanyahu drinking cocktails that began circulating in early February.

Another scene shows belly dancers shimmying on the beach, sporting thick, long beards more typically worn by Islamists.

More than 15 months of war, triggered by Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, have left much of the Gaza Strip in ruins and most of its population displaced from their homes.

Senir Hamas official Bassem Naim said in reaction to the video: "Unfortunately, President Trump is once again proposing ideas and solutions that do not take into account the cultures and interests of the indigenous population."

In Gaza, people who watched the video were in disbelief.

"This video of Trump is full of fallacies and shows a lack of cultural awareness... Gaza won't become a tourist spot like Italy or Spain," said Nasser Abu Hadaid, a 60-year-old resident of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza.

"What I know about Trump is that he is a strange but bold president who does what he says he will do. What matters to him is money and investments -- there is no humanity," said Manal Abu Seif, a 23-year-old lawyer in Gaza City.

"Gaza needs freedom, open border crossings and jobs for young people, and is not a playground for tourism and investment," she added.

UN estimates have put the cost of reconstruction at more than $53 billion.

A fragile ceasefire, in effect since January 19, has allowed an increase in humanitarian aid into Gaza, though Hamas has accused Israel of blocking the entry of some essential supplies.​