More from the White House
Earlier, we reported that the White House responded to the Egyptian proposal for Gaza by saying that Trump stands by his vision for the enclave, but that he welcomes input from Arab partners in the region.
We now have more from Brian Hughes, the spokesman for the White House National Security Council.
He said, “The current proposal does not address the reality that Gaza is currently uninhabitable and residents cannot humanely live in a territory covered in debris and unexploded ordnance.
“President Trump stands by his vision to rebuild Gaza free from Hamas. We look forward to further talks to bring peace and prosperity to the region.”
Trump brings up record on Israel-Palestine in State of the Union Address
The US President has harkened back to his first term in office in a brief reference to Israel and Palestine in his speech to the US Congress.
“In the Middle East, we’re bringing back our hostages from Gaza,” Trump said.
“In my first term, we achieved one of the most groundbreaking peace agreements in generations, the Abraham Accords,” he added, drawing applause from the chamber.
“Then and now we’re going to build on that foundation to create a more peaceful and prosperous future for the entire region,” he said. “A lot of things are happening in the Middle East, rough neighbourhood.”
Notably, though Trump did not refer to his plan to “take over” the Gaza Strip, and make it the “Riviera of the Middle East”, a proposal that has been criticised as ethnic cleansing.
The Abraham Accords led to Oct 7. Groundbreaking war achievement.
Who is Eyal Zamir, the Israeli army’s new chief of staff?
The incoming chief of staff of the Israeli army is retired Major-General Eyal Zamir, former director-general of the Defence Ministry, whose term begins today.
Zamir takes over from Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, who announced his resignation in January in anticipation of last week’s report into the military’s catastrophic failings during the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023.
Defence Minister Israel Katz, along with Netanyahu, picked Zamir for the role last month. He will command all Israeli military operations, including its deployments to Gaza, Syria and Lebanon.
Zamir has been considered for the role of chief of staff twice, but was passed over both times in favour of the outgoing Halevi and his predecessor, Aviv Kohavi.
Originally conscripted into the military in 1984, Zamir progressed through the ranks from tank officer to commander of the 7th Armored Brigade in 2003 and the 36th Armored Division in 2009.
Critically for his future success, he was Netanyahu’s military secretary from 2012 to 2015, then leader of Israel’s southern command for the next three years.
In his final year in the southern command, Zamir’s troops “confronted” Palestinian protesters from Gaza taking part in the Great March of Return; they killed more than 150 protesters and wounded 10,000 others, including 1,849 children, 424 women, 115 paramedics and 115 journalists.
Essay Pro