Trump: Gaza is a ‘real mess’, needs a ‘diplomatic solution’

President Trump says a diplomatic solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict still possible even amid push for unilateral Palestinian statehood, while calling the Gaza Strip a “real mess.”

By World Israel News Staff

President Donald Trump expressed optimism Sunday evening that a diplomatic solution can still be reached to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, while lamenting that the situation in the Gaza Strip is “a real mess.”

Trump spoke with reporters onboard Air Force One while returning to Washington DC, after attending a memorial service for right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

When asked by a reporter whether a diplomatic solution to the conflict was “still a possibility” after the international initiative to recognize Palestinian statehood without a final status agreement, Trump said he is hopeful, adding he prefers a diplomatic solution.

“I hope so. I would like to see a diplomatic solution. There is a lot of anger and a lot of hatred, you know that. And there has been like this for many years, this is not something new.”

The president added that his administration is still drafting plans for the Gaza Strip, which he called “a real mess.”

“But hopefully we will get something done. We are studying Gaza; we are dealing with Gaza very strongly now. That is a real mess.”

Last Friday, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Reuters that the Trump administration is in talks with Gulf Arab states regarding the post-war governance of the Gaza Strip.

While no final decision has been made, Huckabee emphasized, administration officials are considering positioning the US in a supervisory role over an interim ruling body charged with handling the war-torn coastal enclave.

“It’s a discussion. It’s not something that has been accepted by the administration, by Israel, by anyone. I’m not familiar with anything that is ready for signature,” Huckabee said.