Trump says no plans to send U.S. military to Gaza

The US has no plans to send its troops to the Gaza Strip. The corresponding statement was made by US President Donald Trump on February 7 ahead of talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

"We're not talking about troops on the ground or anything like that," Trump told reporters.

The president added that security in Gaza will be handled by Israel.

"Two to three years is a realistic timeframe for Gaza's economic recovery"

Oleg Kobyakov, Director of the Russian branch of the UN Food Organization, on the catastrophe in the Middle East, problems in European countries and the world price index

Earlier, on February 5, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a meeting with Trump that Tel Aviv intends to destroy the Palestinian movement Hamas, return all Jewish hostages and eliminate the threat to the country from the Gaza Strip. The American leader, in turn, called Gaza a demolition site and suggested that Palestinians should be resettled in Jordan, Egypt or other countries.

Later, during a press conference, Trump said that the United States will take control of the Gaza Strip. At the same time, he specified that the state would own the territory and be responsible for its reconstruction, The New York Times (NYT) reported.

In addition, The Wall Street Journal learned about Trump's conversation with Netanyahu, during which the American leader claimed "prime real estate" in Gaza.

At the time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, commenting on Trump's words, reminded that Russia's position on the Palestinian issue is based on the two-state principle. This thesis, he emphasized, is enshrined in the relevant article of the UN Security Council.

On January 19, the first phase of the ceasefire came into effect between Israel and Hamas. During this phase of the deal, which will last 42 days, 33 Israeli hostages and about 1,900 Palestinians are to be released. On the same day, the movement released three hostages in exchange for 90 Palestinian prisoners, and on January 26, four military girls were handed over to the Red Cross. They were subsequently flown to their homeland. On February 7, the movement said it would release three more hostages.

The situation in the Middle East escalated on the morning of October 7, 2023, when Hamas subjected Israeli territory to a massive rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. On the same day, Israel began retaliatory strikes.