Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz says he has instructed the military to draft a plan to “allow voluntary departure” of Gaza residents from the enclave – days after President Donald Trump’s controversial proposal for the United States to “take over” the Gaza Strip and remove all the people living there.
“I welcome President Trump’s bold plan, which could enable a large segment of Gaza’s population to relocate to various destinations around the world,” Katz said in a statement.
The Israeli plan would allow Gaza residents to depart for “any country willing to receive them”, via land crossings or through “special arrangements for departure by sea and air”, he said. Palestinians in Gaza have mostly not been able to leave the enclave since the war began in October 2023, with some exceptions such as limited medical evacuations.
Katz cited Spain, Ireland and Norway – governments that have criticised Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza and which are unlikely to agree to cooperate with Trump’s proposal – as places that could take in Palestinians.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said in response: “No one should enter into a debate about where the Palestinians, and in particular Gazan Palestinians, should go. The land of the Gazan Palestinians is Gaza.”
