Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

I'm still at the White House, waiting in a long queue to leave the East Room.

The mood in the room is, I'd say, one of overall surprise.

While the bulk of media here expected very little public discord between Netanyahu and Trump, few expected him to outright call for a US "take over" of what he says might become the "Riviera of the Middle East".

Many questions will certainly be asked about this in the coming days - and it remains to be seen how the White House will clarify those points.

It's not difficult to imagine, however, that those comments are raising alarm bells among many - including the thousands of voters in the US who refused to vote for Biden based on his Gaza stance.

A startling proposal for Gazapublished at 00:47 Greenwich Mean Time 5 February

00:47 GMT 5 February

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent

Donald Trump continues to startle everyone with his proposals for Gaza.

He said the US would “take over the Gaza Strip”, level buildings, deal with unexploded ammunition, create "an unlimited number of jobs” and create housing “for the people of the area” – without saying who he was talking about.

His remarks came hot on the heels of his earlier suggestion that the entire Palestinian population of the Gaza Strip - more than two million people - should be relocated elsewhere, to Jordan, Egypt and elsewhere.

He also called for it to become "the Riviera of the Middle East" - outlining a truly bizarre vision of a US-owned Gaza, populated by "representatives from all over the world" - including Palestinians.

It's head-spinning stuff and it was notable that Trump declined to say on what international authority the US would be acting.

Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank will also be wondering tonight what the president has in store for them.

Trump says he has not made his mind up about a possible Israeli annexation of parts of the West Bank, but says he will have an announcement "in the next four weeks"

He says his thinking has "nothing to do" with a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians, but that’s not how it will be seen by the Palestinians.

Before ending the news conference Trump was asked if Palestinians who leave Gaza will be allowed to resettle there in the future, under his plan to remove 2.1 million people.

"Who do you envision living there?" the reporter asked.

"People living there. The world's people," said Trump, ducking the question.

The reporter asked if this will include Palestinians, and Trump said that it will.

"I don't want to be cute. I don't want to be a wiseguy. But this could be the Riviera of the Middle East," said Trump.

He added that the leaders of Jordan and Egypt will provide land to Palestinians - a notion that has been flatly rejected by those countries' leaders.

Image source, Reuters

Asked about Iranian sanctions, Trump says he hated imposing them before, and wants the country to be successful.

I would love to be able to "make a great deal" with the beautiful people of Iran, Trump says, adding that he has many American-Iranian friends.

The president says he wants to avoid a "catastrophic situation" – but there is one thing: they "cannot have a nuclear weapon". Trump says it would be "unfortunate" if Tehran thought it could acquire such weapons.

Netanyahu has made no secret that he is pleased Trump is back, after an often tense relationship with Biden.

"You are the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House," Netanyahu said, a not-so-subtle nod to his relationships with Biden and Obama alike.

He's now listing Trump's policy moves that he approves of, including today's Executive Orders about UNRWA and the restart of the "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran.

"All this in just two weeks. Can you imagine where we will be in four years? I can," he said. "And I know you can too, Mr President."

Trump is asked about his plan to ship Palestinians out of Gaza, to be re-located to other countries.

He asks if this position means that he is against a "two-state solution" - meaning an independent Palestine existing alongside Israel.

"It doesn't mean anything about a two-state or a one-state or any other state," says Trump, who ducks the question.

He says that the people of Gaza "have never had a chance at life" and calls the Gaza strip a "hell hole".

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

On Trump's suggestion that the US could take over the Gaza strip, Netanyahu says it's an idea "worth paying attention to".

He says Israel is focussed on making sure the territory is no longer a danger to their country.

He says Trump "sees a different future for Gaza", adding: "I think it's something that could change history."

Trump is asked about his claim that the US will "own" Gaza in the future.

"Are you talking about taking over a sovereign territory?" Trump is asked by a reporter.

Trump says that yes, he is envisioning a "long term" occupation, led by the US.

"Owning that piece of land, developing it, creating thousands of jobs. It really will be magnificent," he says.

"Everyone loves the idea," he adds.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Trump has again - not for the first time today - suggested that Gaza shouldn't be inhabited and that its Palestinian residents should move elsewhere.

He has suggested that this could by paid for by nearby nations of "great wealth" - and that the US could take responsibility for redeveloping Gaza.

"The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we'll do a job with it too," he said. "We'll own it."

In my corner of the room, that comment elicited several gasps from reporters.

He's also taken the opportunity to comment on his immigration policies, saying that Hamas sympathizers and others are among those detained and deported.

"Israel will end the war by winning the war," Netanyahu says – adding that it will be a victory for the US as well.

We will win the peace, and can forge a new future for the Middle East, the Israeli PM says.

And with that we move on to questions.

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Netanyahu continues his remarks by hailing the success of Israel's recent wars - noting successful missions in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran.

He notes that some of the groups that Israel is fighting are responsible for "shedding rivers of American blood".

He uses religious language about the Lion of Judah roaring, and argues that Israel must finish the job in Gaza.

The Israeli PM goes on to praise Trump for "thinking outside the box".

"You cut to the chase. You see things that others refuse to see," he tells Trump, adding: "This is the kind of thinking that will reshape the Middle East."

Netanyahu praises Trump saying he helped bring Israeli – and US-Israeli – hostages home, in reference to the ceasefire deal. He notes that Trump has allowed weapons to flow back into Israel that had been held up under Biden.

And he says Trump has ended "unjust sanctions" that were slapped on certain Jewish settlers. He is also happy that the new administration says it will not fund the UN Palestinian agency Unrwa, which Israel has been highly critical of.

"All in two weeks. Can you imagine where we will be in four years? I can."

Netanyahu begins his remarks by noting that he is the first foreign leader to visit Washington in Trump's second term.

He describes the visit as an honour, and says the visit is "testament to your friendship and support for the Jewish state and the Jewish people".

"You are the greatest friend Israel has ever had in the White House," he says, as people in the audience applaud.

He goes on to say that the people of Israel also support Trump, and lists achievements from Trump's first term which benefited Israel.

Image source, Reuters

Trump asserts, without evidence, that the only reason the Palestinians want to go back to Gaza is they have no alternative. He describes it as a demolition site.

The president says the US could take over the Gaza strip and do "a real job with it" – removing unexploded bombs, rebuilding it and getting the economy moving again.

He says we can't go back to how things were before, or history would repeat itself.

Trump says the Gaza strip has been "a symbol of death and destruction for so many decades".

He goes on to call the Palestinian territory "unlucky" and repeats his claim that the population wishes to leave to live in other countries.

He says the people there have "lived a miserable existence" and should leave. He says their relocation should be paid for richer countries in the region to allow them to "live in comfort and peace".

If they leave, "they won't be shot at and destroyed", he says, claiming the only reason people live in Gaza is because "they have no alternative".

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

After a long and unexplained delay, Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu are now addressing the reporters in the room, who are crammed in on one half of the large East Room of the White House.

"That's a lot of press," Trump remarked at the beginning, before diving into descriptions of the "unbreakable" alliance between the two countries.

He also took a quick jab at former US President Joe Biden, saying that there have "not been so many victories in the last four years".

"Unfortunately the weakness and incompetence of those last four years did damage around the globe, including in the Middle East," he said.

Among those in the room are Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Steve Witkoff, Trump's special envoy for the Middle East and Vice President JD Vance.

Trump says during his first term he had "great victories" working with Netanyahu, bringing "peace and stability" to the Middle East, defeating IS and ending the Iranian nuclear deal.

He continues to talk about his own record in his first term, opening the US embassy in Jerusalem, and signing the Abraham accords, where some Arab nations recognised Israel for the first time.

Image source, Reuters

After nearly two hours of delay, Trump begins the news conference by congratulating Netanyahu because he "brings out" a lot of news reporters.

He thanks Netanyahu, calling him by his nickname "Bibi", and notes that this is the first visit by a foreign leader in his second term in the White House.

He adds that the bonds between the US and Israel are “absolutely unbreakable”.

Trump and Netanyahu have just began speaking at their scheduled news conference from the White House.

Stick with us as we bring you further updates.

As Trump and Netanyahu meet in Washington DC, Palestinian ambassador to the United Nations, Riyad Mansour, says the wishes of Palestinian people remained unchanged.

"About the meeting in Washington DC, we want the ceasefire to be permanent, we want the implementation of all provisions of the agreement in all the stages and all elements, and also we want the aggression in the West Bank to stop, and too the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the cities and the refugees camps from the northern part of the Gaza Strip," he said.

"These are the positions, not only of the Palestinians but also of the Arabs and the Muslim countries, and we sincerely hope that that will be the case."

Trump has repeatedly claimed that the residents of Gaza want to leave the devastated area. This is incorrect, and in fact, many of them say they wish to rebuild.