Kushner urges expulsion of people of Gaza in favor of waterfront city

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
19 Mar 2024 20:32
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Jared Kushner blatantly advocates for the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians and the eradication of Gaza City as "reasonable" plans for occupied Palestine.

Jared Kushner speaks at Harvard University during an interview with Professor Tarek Masoud (not seen in the picture) in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the United States, on March 8, 2024. (YouTube/Middle East Initiative)

Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former US President Donald Trump and his senior foreign policy advisor, called for the mass expulsion of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the development of a waterfront in the besieged Palestinian territory.

In an interview at Harvard University on March 8 with Professor Tarek Masoud, Kushner advocated for the "cleaning up" of Palestinian citizens from the Gaza Strip while "Israel" carries on its genocidal war.

Kushner is most known for leading normalization talks between several Arab and Muslim states, on the one hand, and "Israel", on the other. During his time at the White House, the United States also transferred the headquarters of its Embassy to "Israel" from "Tel Aviv" to occupied al-Quds, marking an unprecedented disregard for the Palestinian right to statehood.

"Gaza’s waterfront property could be very valuable … if people would focus on building up livelihoods," Kushner told Masoud, Harvard University's Middle East Initiative faculty chair.

"It’s a little bit of an unfortunate situation there, but from Israel’s perspective I would do my best to move the people out and then clean it up," Kushner said with ease, as he suggested the ethnic cleansing of more than 2 million Palestinians.

Where will Kushner take 2 million+ Palestinians?

Kushner's grand plan is to forcibly displace millions of Palestinians to the occupied al-Naqab desert, located to the east of the Gaza Strip, and the Sinai desert in Egypt.

He said that if he were to lead Israeli decision-making, his number one priority would be getting Palestinians outside of the historic Palestinian city of Rafah to Egypt through "diplomacy".

However, his plan to dictate the lives of millions of Palestinians would not be so short-sighted. Instead, Kushner believes that it would be adequate to bulldoze an area in the al-Naqab desert and move Palestinians there while the Israeli occupation forces go into the southern city of Rafah and "finish the job."

"But in addition to that, I would just bulldoze something in the Negev, I would try to move people in there," he said. "I think that’s a better option, so you can go in and finish the job."

Kushner, seemingly aware of how ridiculous the idea is, said shortly after, "I do think right now opening up the Negev, creating a secure area there, moving the civilians out, and then going in and finishing the job would be the right move."

Sitting in Miami Beach and spreading Zionist propaganda

When asked if the idea is being discussed by Israeli officials, Kushner said, "I don't know," while shrugging his shoulders.

When asked if he would work on the idea if he holds a position of power in the future, Kushner satirically explained, "I’m sitting in Miami Beach right now... And I’m looking at the situation and I’m thinking: what would I do if I was there?"

Kushner did not suffice with recommending the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians, as he sits on a Miami beach, but he went on to dismiss Palestinian history and belittle the heritage of some of the oldest cities in West Asia.

"I am not sure there is much left of Gaza at this point. If you think about even the construct, Gaza was not really a historical precedent. It was the result of a war. You had tribes in different places and then Gaza became a thing. Egypt used to run it and then over time different governments came in," he said.

Kushner's remarks, either built on misinformation or disinformation, sidelines the fact that Gaza City dates back to at least 1500 BC and has been a historical hub for several Empires. The entire Gaza Strip is dotted with historical Palestinian towns and cities that are populated with native Palestinian Arab families, as well as Palestinians who were expelled by "Israel" to refugee camps in the 1948 Nakba and the 1967 Naksa.

Following the rhetoric of the most extreme Israeli politicians, Kushner also stressed that awarding Palestinians their right of statehood "would essentially be rewarding an act of terror," adding that it would be "a super bad idea."

Although Kushner refused to link his comments to discourse among Israeli decision-makers, his ideas of forcibly displacing millions of Palestinians have been heavily discussed by several Israeli politicians, especially during the war of genocide in Gaza.