On Sunday, US President Donald Trump doubled down on the idea, saying the United States is “committed to buying and owning Gaza" and displacing its population of 1.9 million people.
As Trump doubles down on Gaza plan, 69% of Israelis support idea despite concern
Three surveys show that Israelis support President Donald Trump's proposal to transfer Gazans to other countries and for the United States to take over the Strip, but are skeptical that such a plan could be implemented.
Nearly 70% of Israelis support President Donald Trump's proposal to expel residents of the Gaza Strip to other countries, though most believe the plan is unrealistic, a recent poll by Channel 12 showed.
When asked, "Are you for or against Trump's plan for the evacuation of Gaza residents?" the poll published on Friday showed 69% supporting the plan that would entail an American "takeover" of Gaza while 18% oppose it. Another 13% said they were still undecided. Over 90% of voters for the right-wing coalition are in favor of the plan, per the poll. Voters for opposition parties are 58% in favor of it.
“Think of it as a big real estate site, and the United States is going to own it and will slowly, very slowly, develop it,” Trump told reporters.
Trump proposed last week to transfer the majority of Gazans to other Arab countries, singling out Jordan and Egypt, and for the United States to take over Gaza and handle its reconstruction. The idea was met with fierce objection by Arab and European leaders.
Support in Israel
Channel 12's survey is in line with other polls published in Israel last week. On Wednesday, Israel's Channel 13 showed that 72% of people polled support the plan, 17% are against it and 11% are undecided. Over 90% of those who voted for the Israeli right or for the ultra-Orthodox parties in the last election in 2022 are in favor of the plan, compared with 74% of centrist Yesh Atid voters and only third of people who voted for the center-left Labor or leftist Meretz.
A survey published Friday by Israel's Channel 12 showed similar results, with 69% supporting the plan and 18% against it. Another 13% said they were still undecided. Over 90% of coalition voters are in favor of the plan, per the poll. Voters of opposition parties are 58% in favor of it.
A survey published Thursday by Israeli right-affiliated Channel 14 showed support of the plan at 76%, with 16% against it and only 8% undecided. This survey did not break down the political leanings of the 506 polled.
Channels 12 and 13 did not provide total numbers for their data sets.
The surveys were all published after Trump's joint press conference with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House last Tuesday. Upon returning to Israel from the United States on Sunday, Netanyahu praised the proposal, saying that the American leader "came with a completely different, much better vision for Israel — a revolutionary, creative approach that we are currently discussing." He added that Trump "is very determined to implement it, and I believe it opens up many, many possibilities for us."
Leaders of the Israeli far right were also quick to hail the plan. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said Wednesday, "The plan presented yesterday by President Trump is the real response to Oct. 7. Those who perpetrated the worst massacre on our land will find themselves losing their own land for good."
In contrast Yair Golan, head of the center-left opposition party the Democrats, reiterated that Israel must advance a governing alternative to Hamas, that includes the Palestinian Authority. "We need to work hand in hand with the Americans and with the moderate Arab countries to ensure a responsible and correct reconstruction in Gaza that preserves our security. The statements about transfer are good for headlines, but not in reality," Golan posted on X Wednesday.
International reactions
Trump’s Gaza proposal provoked strong, mostly critical reactions. Egypt announced Sunday it will host an emergency Arab summit on Feb. 27 to discuss what it called “new and dangerous developments for the Palestinian cause."
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan slammed the idea Sunday, saying no one had the power to remove Gazans from their territory. “The proposals put forward by the new American administration regarding Gaza with the pressure of the Zionist lobby have nothing worth considering or discussing from our perspective.”
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement Sunday, "The right of the Palestinian People will remain firmly established and no one will be able to take it away from them no matter how long it takes.” The comment came after Netanyahu said in an interview, “The Saudis can create a Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia; they have a lot of land over there.”
Surprisingly, Russia said on Monday it is awaiting further details to decide how to approach the plan. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said there are many unanswered questions about Trump’s proposal. “We need to wait for details if this is a consistent action plan,” Peskov said, adding that the Palestinians were promised statehood by UN Security Council resolutions. “There are many such questions. We do not know the details yet, and we need to be patient,” he said.
Can plan be implemented?
While the majority of Israelis support the idea, most believe the proposal is not feasible.
The Channel 13 survey showed that only 35% of those polled believe the plan will be implemented. Another 46% think it will not be implemented, and 19% said they don’t know.
The Channel 12 survey showed similar results. Half of Israelis said they do not believe the plan could be carried out. Only 36% said it could be implemented, with 14% undecided.
The president of the Israel Democracy Institute, former Knesset member Yohanan Plesner from the now defunct centrist Kadima party, thinks that the surveys reflect confusion among the Israeli public on the details of the plan
On Sunday, Trump doubled down on the idea, saying he could allow other states in the Middle East to rebuild parts of the Strip. “I’m committed to buying and owning Gaza. As far as us rebuilding it, we may give it to other states in the Middle East to build sections of it," Trump told reporters, adding, "We’re committed to owning it, taking it and making sure that Hamas doesn’t move back."
Last week, some of Trump's top aides sought to soften his proposal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the president was only proposing to temporarily move Gaza residents out of the territory to allow for reconstruction and insisted that Trump had not committed to using US troops to gain permanent control of Gaza.
"Most Israelis do not want to rule over the 2 million residents of Gaza and do not want Jewish resettling in the Strip, but at the same time, following the Oct. 7 2023, assault, they fear that Hamas will continue to govern there," Plesner told Al-Monitor. "Many Israelis reject the idea of a Palestinian state in Gaza. They are concerned that once the Israeli military pulls out, radical Islamic elements will take over," he said.
"If indeed the second phase of the hostage deal goes through, which is very unclear at the moment, we will be back in a situation where Hamas is still on the ground, perhaps even ruling the Strip. So we are far from a stable solution the Israeli public can live with," Plesner added.
