Brazil's Lula slams Trump's plan to ‘take over’ Gaza as 'incomprehensible'

WASHINGTON

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Wednesday dismissed a plan announced by US President Donald Trump to take control of the Gaza Strip as "practically incomprehensible."

During an interview with Minas Gerais radio, the Brazilian president said it is the Palestinians "who have to take care of Gaza."

"The United States participated in the incentive to everything Israel did in the Gaza Strip, so it makes no sense for the President of the United States to meet with the prime minister of Israel and say, look, we will occupy Gaza, recover Gaza, live in Gaza," said Lula.

"And the Palestinians, where are they going? Where will they live? What is their country? It's something practically incomprehensible to any human being," he added.

His remarks came in response to Trump, who, during a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said the US "will take over" Gaza and resettle Palestinians elsewhere, prompting a storm of condemnations.

"Who has to take care of Gaza are the Palestinians. What they need is to have a repair of everything that has been destroyed so that they can rebuild their homes, hospitals, schools and live with dignity. That's why we defend the creation of the Palestinian state like the state of Israel, and establish a policy of harmonious coexistence because that's what the world needs," Lula added.

Trump first triggered uproar on Jan. 25 by suggesting that Palestinians in Gaza should be relocated to Jordan and Egypt, calling the enclave a “demolition site” after Israel’s war.