US President Donald Trump (R) and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu take questions during a press conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on February 4, 2025. (Photo by ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)
OAN Staff Brooke Mallory 5:59 PM – Tuesday, February 4, 2025
Following the U.S. commander in chief’s Tuesday meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, officials announced that President Donald Trump is planning to rebuild Gaza, while expanding the Abraham Accords in an effort to include additional nations — which was confirmed by Trump in a joint conference.
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Incredible footage of President Trump navigating through the West Wing at the White House just moments ago upon greeting Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu. Dan Scavino always captures the best moments. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/TwIGQhVPip
“In our meetings today, the prime minister and I focused on the future, discussing how we can work together to ensure Hamas is eliminated and ultimately restore peace to a very troubled region,” Trump said during the press conference. “It’s been troubled, but what’s happened in the last four years has not been good.”
This is the first press conference with a world leader for Trump since resuming office in January.
The two leaders discussed upholding peace agreements and a shared resolve to releasing prisoners kidnapped by Hamas on October 7th, 2023.
Trump pledged on Tuesday that the United States will take control of the war-torn Gaza Strip after Palestinians are relocated elsewhere — in order to develop the area economically. The U.S. president declared that the United States would “take over the Gaza strip,” level it, and reconstruct the region.
“The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too,” Trump said on Tuesday evening in the joint press conference. “We’ll own it, and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous, unexplored bombs and other weapons on the site.”
“Level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area,” he continued. “Do a real job. Do something different. Just can’t go back. If you go back, it’s going to end up the same way it has for 100 years.”
“I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East, and maybe the entire Middle East,” Trump added. “And everybody I’ve spoken to — this was not a decision made lightly — everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land. Developing and creating thousands of jobs with something that will be magnificent in a really magnificent area that nobody would know. Nobody can look because all they see is death and destruction and rubble.”
One of Netanyahu’s three objectives, he told the media when questioned about Gaza, is to “make sure that Gaza [Hamas] never poses a threat to Israel again.”
“President Trump is taking it to a much higher level,” the Israeli PM stated. “He sees a different — he sees a different future for that piece of land that has been the focus of so much terrorism, so much so many attacks against us, so many, so many trials and so many tribulations. He has a different idea, and I think it’s worth paying attention to this.”
Trump continued to highlight the topics that the two men discussed in the earlier meeting.
“In our meetings today, the prime minister and I focused on the future, discussing how we can work together to ensure Hamas is eliminated and ultimately restore peace to a very troubled region,” Trump said during the press conference. “It’s been troubled, but what’s happened in the last four years has not been good.”
The Gaza Strip has become “a symbol of death and destruction for so many decades and so bad for the people anywhere near it,” he continued.
“It should not go through a process of rebuilding and occupation by the same people that have really stood there and fought for it and lived there and died there and lived a miserable existence there,” Trump added.
In his remarks to the media, Netanyahu, whose nickname is Bibi, also praised Trump’s perseverance and capacity “to think outside the box.”
“Your willingness to puncture conventional thinking, thinking that has failed time and time and time again, your willingness to think outside the box with fresh ideas, will help us achieve all these goals,” Netanyahu continued. “And I’ve seen you do this many times. You cut to the chase. You see things others refuse to see. You say things others refuse to say, you know. And after the jaws drop, people scratch their heads and they say, you know, he’s right.”
The Israeli PM went on to say that America will undoubtedly benefit from his country’s victory as well.
“Israel’s victory will be America’s victory,” Netanyahu said. “We will not only win the war working together, we will win the peace. With your leadership, Mr. President, and our partnership, I believe that we will forge a brilliant future for our region and bring our great alliance to even greater heights.”
I’m leaving for a very important meeting with @realDonaldTrump in Washington.
The fact that this would be President Trump’s first meeting with a foreign leader since his inauguration is telling.
I think it’s a testimony to the strength of the Israeli-American alliance. It’s… pic.twitter.com/wWYrC7mYrF
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) February 2, 2025
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