Owning It

President Trump, who likes to surprise and shock, did it again by suggesting that the US should “own” the Gaza Strip and transform it into the Riviera of the Middle East after the immense damage caused by Israel’s war with Hamas. His idea has not been received well by countries in the region – especially the part about moving almost two million Palestinians out of the territory while the rubble is cleaned up.

It's useful to remember that among the roles Mr. Trump had before he was President was that of developer. Developers are drawn to see opportunity where there is a depressed area. The only problem with such ideas is that there are often people in the way. You might think, as Mr. Trump does, that those who lived in Gaza before the war could not possibly want to stay there now amid all the rubble. Except that’s what many are doing, as it’s their home. They can’t just leave forever.

Our country does own something: the responsibility for helping to rebuild Gaza. We might think that’s not our job. But among the debris on the ground that Gazan children are playing with are the remains of bombs with “Made in the USA” on them, or words to that effect, as we supplied many of the bombs Israel has dropped during the war. At the very least, it’s a serious optics issue for us.

What Gaza needs is kind of a Marshall Plan, named after George C. Marshall, the American general and Secretary of State who put forth the idea of the US helping Western Europe recover from the ravages of World War II. Among the countries it benefited was our former enemy in that conflict, Germany. The goal was simply to help these places get back on their feet, not to take them over permanently.

I actually don’t have a problem with what appears to be part of Mr. Trump’s vision. Gaza’s long Mediterranean coastline is a valuable asset, and resort hotels being built on portions of it could be a significant source of income for the territory, or autonomous region, or enclave, whatever Gaza is called. Maybe someday it could be an independent country, preferably without Hamas in charge.

Does the Israeli-Palestinian conflict need a two-state solution? It almost could be three states, since the Palestinians in Gaza are said to be different from their brethren in the West Bank, and unified governance might be difficult. But let’s not get ahead of our skis, as they say – the war isn’t quite over yet.