Anwar holds back comment, says 'will first study' Trump statement on 'cleaning up' Gaza

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said today that the government would need to first study President Donald Trump's statement that the US would take over the Gaza Strip and rebuild it as its own, but stopped short of condemning the proposal which includes the displacement of millions of Palestinians from the territory.

"We will first study the statement and then we will discuss it," Anwar said when asked about Trump's announcement to rebuild Gaza and resettle millions of Palestinians in neighbouring Arab states.

Anwar added that Malaysia's position on the Palestinian struggle had not changed.

"Malaysia's stance remains the same as other Muslim countries. As for the rest, we will comment later."

It comes as the opposition mounts pressure on the government to state its position on Trump's proposal, which has since been condemned by at least one Umno minister.

"Crazy," Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan told MalaysiaNow in a one-word reaction.

At press time, Wisma Putra has yet to issue an official statement on Trump's plan.

The plan has already been rejected by Saudi Arabia, one of the US's close allies in the Middle East.

"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia also reaffirms its unequivocal rejection of any infringement on the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, whether through Israeli settlement policies, land annexation, or attempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land," said the Saudi foreign ministry in a statement.

"The international community has a duty today to alleviate the severe humanitarian suffering endured by the Palestinian people, who will remain steadfast on their land and will not move from it."

Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump spoke about a complete redevelopment of Gaza after expelling the nearly two million Palestinians living there to neighbouring Arab states, adding that the territory should be transformed into “the "Riviera of the Middle East”.

"The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too," he said.

"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,.

"As far as Gaza is concerned, we’ll do what is necessary. If it’s necessary, we’ll do that. We’re going to take over that piece that we’re going to develop it," he said as quoted by CNN.

The plan sparked a strong reaction from Perikatan Nasional, which called for a special session of the Dewan Rakyat to discuss the plan.

The opposition bloc also called on the Anwar government to cut all ties with entities that support Israel, citing the involvement of a company owned by US fund manager BlackRock in the privatisation of Malaysia Airports Holdings (MAHB).

"This is a moment that calls for courage from Parliament and the speaker to convene a special session as these are issues of common interest," said Machang MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal, who also warned that companies like BlackRock are likely to be part of Trump's latest plan.

Anwar has so far defended his decision to invite Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a company owned by BlackRock, as part of a consortium to run MAHB, and has dismissed vocal protests against the deal from pro-Palestinian groups who point to the US fund manager's role in bolstering Israel's economy and defence industry.

Just last week, Anwar announced that Malaysia would actively participate in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip following the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

Israel's offensive in the Gaza Strip since October 2023 has so far killed more than 50,000 Palestinian civilians and devastated the coastal region's infrastructure.