Palestinians Slam Trump's Plan to Takeover Gaza: 'We Would Rather Die Here Than Leave'

Palestinians returning to the rubble of their homes have reacted angrily to President Donald Trump's insistence on a US takeover of the Gaza Strip, which would involve resettling the strip's current residents.

"We would rather die here than leave this land," 52-year-old Abu Firas, a resident of Gaza, told the Guardian. "No amount of money in the world can replace your homeland."

Following 15 months of Israeli bombardment, much of the Gaza Strip has been reduced to rubble. Firas currently resides in a tent on Gaza's coast after his home in Khan Younis was destroyed by the IDF. He has lost 80 relatives in the onslaught.

Trump shared his vision for Gaza being reconstructed into the "Riviera of the Middle East", further stating that Palestinians would be happy to leave the strip, which he considers "unlucky" and a "symbol of death and destruction". However, the residents of Gaza are making it clear that they were not consulted before the formation of this vision and that they do not support it.

"We will not allow the rights of our people... to be infringed on," said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, reiterating that the Gaza Strip is an "an integral part of the State of Palestine."

"These calls represent a serious violation of international law," President Abbas continued. "Peace and stability will not be achieved in the region without the establishment of a Palestinian state."

Residents have also expressed concerns about facing a second Nakba, or "catastrophe" similar to what Palestinians faced in 1948, when 700,000 were forcibly removed from their homes following the creation of the Israeli state.

"No matter where a person moves or how much they try to live in beautiful cities, they will never find peace except in their own city and land," said Ramz, a 50-year-old father of four living in Gaza. "In the end, despite all this destruction we will stay here on our land to live and die with dignity."

"The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too," Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday. "We'll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings."