Any suggestion to force Gaza people from their land, "unacceptable", UN High Commissioner

CAIRO – 24 February 2025: The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said on Monday that “any suggestion of forcing Gaza people from their land is completely unacceptable”.

“In Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, where the suffering has been unbearable, I repeat my call for an independent investigation into grave violations of international law,” Türk said opening the 58th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

He added, “Any sustainable solution must be based on accountability, justice, the right to self-determination..., Any suggestion of forcing people from their land is completely unacceptable.”

US President Donald Trump stated on Friday that he is not intending to impose his recently announced plan to take over Gaza and displace its residents elsewhere, especially to Egypt and Jordan.

In an interview with Fox News Radio, Trump described his plan as good, but said he will opt to recommend instead of imposing it.

Trump expressed surprise at the rejection of his plan by Jordan and Egypt, citing the US provision of substantial financial aid to both countries.

He said that his plan ends Hamas’ presence in Gaza.

Trump claimed that the people of Gaza will be willing to move to a more stable place if they are given the choice.

The US president’s plan has drawn global and Arab condemnation, suggesting that the US will "take over" Gaza and permanently displace its more than two million Palestinian residents to neighboring areas, especially Egypt and Jordan.

Several rights groups have labeled the planned move as “ethnic cleansing.”

In a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier in February, Trump claimed that the US “will take over the Gaza Strip … and be responsible for dismantling all the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.”

He claimed that the US would transform Gaza into a development project that could become “the Riviera of the Middle East.”

Egypt, Jordan, the Arab League—which comprises all 22 Arab countries—and the European Union have all opposed this proposal, stressing that it undermines the globally-advocated two-state solution for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.