By MEG KINNARD (Associated Press)
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s former White House adviser and his son-in-law, praised the “very valuable” potential of Gaza’s “waterfront property,” suggesting that Israel should remove civilians while it “cleans up” the area.
“Gaza's location near the water could be very valuable if people focused on building livelihoods,” Kushner said in an interview from Feb. 15, which was posted earlier this month on the YouTube channel of the Middle East Initiative, a program of Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, and reported first on Tuesday by The Guardian. “If you think about all the money that’s gone into this tunnel network and into all the munitions, if that would have gone into education or innovation, what could have been done?”
“It’s a bit of an unfortunate situation there, but I think from Israel’s perspective, I would do my best to move the people out and then clean it up,” Kushner added. “But I don’t think that Israel has stated that they don’t want the people to move back there afterwards.”
Responding on Tuesday to criticism of his remarks, Kushner posted a video of the entire interaction, saying he stood by his comments “and believe the Palestinian people’s lives will improve ONLY when the international community and their citizenry start demanding accountability from their leadership.”
About 1.5 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, as Israel looks to eliminate Hamas following the group’s deadly Oct. 7 attack. More than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 70,000 wounded in the Gaza Strip since Israel’s war on Hamas began. Hamas has been designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Canada and the European Union.
On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to send a team of Israeli officials to Washington to discuss a prospective Rafah operation with Biden administration officials.
The agreement to hold such talks came as President Joe Biden and Netanyahu spoke Monday, their first interaction in more than a month, as the divide has grown between allies over the food crisis in Gaza and Israel’s conduct during the war, according to the White House. White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the talks will happen in the coming days and are expected to involve military, intelligence and humanitarian experts.
In the interview last month, Kushner also suggested that getting civilians out of Rafah and potentially into Egypt, might be possible “with the right diplomacy,” also positing a plan for the the Negev desert in southern Israel.
In addition, Kushner proposed that he would consider clearing an area in the Negev and relocating people there, even though he understands it may not be popular. He believes it might be a better option and would help to complete the job.
Kushner also commented that he believes Israel has made more effort than other countries to protect civilians from harm.
The discussion about the Israel-Hamas conflict has become a significant focus of this year’s U.S. presidential election, highlighting differences between Biden and Trump, as well as within their own political parties. When asked about Democrats’ increasing criticism of Netanyahu's handling of the war in Gaza during an interview on Monday,
Trump accused Jews who vote for Democrats of having a dislike for Israel and their religion, sparking strong reactions from the White House and Jewish leaders. He reiterated these comments on Tuesday, stating in Florida that Democrats have shown strong opposition to Jewish people. In response, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., condemned Trump’s remarks as “completely offensive and a clear example of the antisemitism that Jews face.
During his time in the Trump administration, Kushner worked on a variety of issues and policies, including efforts for peace in the Middle East. Despite becoming the presumptive GOP nominee last week, he stated last month that he has no interest in returning to the White House if Trump wins the 2024 presidential election. Instead, he is focused on his investment business and living with his family in Florida away from public attention.
Jared Kushner, former White House adviser to Donald Trump and his son-in-law, praised the valuable possibilities of Gaza’s waterfront property.
