Jordan renews rejection of ‘alternative homeland’ for Palestinians

By Laith Al-Jnaidi

AMMAN, Jordan (AA) - Jordan renewed its rejection on Monday of Palestinian resettlement after US President Donald Trump called to “clean out” the Gaza Strip.

"All talk about an alternative homeland … is unacceptable. We do not accept it, we have not accepted it, and we will continue to confront it with all our capabilities," Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told parliament.

Quoting King Abdullah II, Safadi said: “Jordan is for Jordanians, Palestine is for Palestinians, and the solution to the Palestinian issue is on Palestinian soil.”

Describing Gaza as a "demolition site," Trump called on Saturday to “just clean out” the Palestinian enclave and resettle Palestinians in Jordan and Egypt.

But Amman and Cairo issued statements vehemently rejecting any call for the displacement or relocation of Palestinians from their land.

The Cairo-based Arab League also said that attempts to uproot the Palestinian people from their land, whether through resettlement, annexation, or settlement expansion, “have proven to fail in the past.”

Trump's proposal came a week after a ceasefire agreement took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, suspending Israel’s genocidal war that has killed more than 47,300 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured more than 111,000 since Oct. 7, 2023.

The Israeli onslaught has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.

The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

* Writing by Ahmed Asmar.