President Trump hasn’t talked about the war in Gaza much since landing in the Middle East. But on Thursday, he doubled down on his plan to develop it as a “freedom zone.”
AILSA CHANG, HOST:
President Trump has not talked about the conflict in Gaza very much during his trip to the Middle East, but this morning, he once again said that he does think the U.S. should take over Gaza and develop the Strip as a freedom zone. He made his comments in Doha, and the comments come as Israel intensifies its campaign in Gaza, with strikes killing more than 150 people there in just the past day.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Gaza’s been a territory of death and destruction for many years. And, you know, I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good. Make it a freedom zone. Let the United States get involved and make it just a freedom zone.
CHANG: NPR White House correspondent Franco Ordoñez is traveling with the president. He joins us now from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Hi, Franco.
FRANCO ORDOÑEZ, BYLINE: Hey, Ailsa.
CHANG: OK, so the war in Gaza is obviously the biggest active conflict in the Middle East right now. Why do you think Trump has not been talking about it more while he’s in the region?
ORDOÑEZ: Well, I mean, he has spoken generally about wanting to broker peace on this and other conflicts on the trip, but today really was the first time that he went into specifics while speaking at a business round table forum in Doha. And he was blunt.
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TRUMP: They’d be proud to have the United States have it, take it, make it a freedom zone, let some good things happen, put people in homes where they can be safe. And Hamas is going to have to be dealt with.
ORDOÑEZ: You know, there’s been little progress in talks for a ceasefire, even after the last living American hostage was released. And Israel is also, as you know, planning a major new offensive after Trump leaves.
CHANG: Well, what have the various leaders whom Trump has been visiting been saying about the conflict?
ORDOÑEZ: I mean, they’ve been pretty quiet about this, as well. I mean, they don’t like Trump’s proposal, but in many ways, they also want to avoid this topic while he’s here. I mean, they’re showering Trump with all these lavish ceremonies and announcing big-dollar investments. It’s because they want to build global credibility. And they also want to kind of insulate themselves in the event that Trump tries to pressure them to take some action on something that they don’t want, whether it’s Gaza or something else in the region.
CHANG: And today, I understand that Trump went to Al Udeid Air Base outside Doha. What was that occasion like?
ORDOÑEZ: You know, Ailsa, it felt very much like a campaign stop, but I was surrounded by military helicopters and service members. Trump delivered a very political speech. He actually called the Biden administration evil. He said the troops were, quote, “making America great again” – you know, using his campaign slogan. You know, he walked onto the stage in his campaign music. He walked off the stage to his campaign music. And, you know, presidents generally try to make speeches to troops apolitical, especially when they’re overseas, so this was pretty unusual.
CHANG: Yeah. Well, also, I saw that Trump visited a mosque today when he landed in the UAE. How significant do you think that is?
ORDOÑEZ: I mean, very – I mean, it’s believed to be the first time he’s ever visited a mosque during his time in public office. It’s a sign of respect to his hosts and their religion, after days of getting a red-carpet treatment. And also, Ailsa, it’s kind of a nod to how he’s tried to repair relationships with the Muslim community in America.
CHANG: That is NPR’s Franco Ordoñez in Abu Dhabi. Thank you so much, Franco.
ORDOÑEZ: Thank you.
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