Donald Trump has said Palestinians would have no right to return to Gaza under his proposal to relocate its population and rebuild the Strip.

The president last week debuted his suggestion to “own” Gaza and shut out Hamas while it’s redeveloped, but has now contradicted officials who had said any relocation would be temporary.

Asked by Fox News if Palestinians could return, he replied: “No, they wouldn’t, because they’re going to have much better housing. In other words, I’m talking about building a permanent place for them.”

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Speaking on Monday at the White House, Mr Trump also suggested the current ceasefire in Gaza should end on Saturday if Hamas does not release hostages as planned.

He then went further, saying all the remaining hostages should be released by midday on Saturday, or the ceasefire should be cancelled – and that “all hell is going to break out” if the hostages are not freed then.

But the US president added: “I’m speaking for myself. Israel can override it.”

Hamas said earlier it would delay the release of hostages – accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire.

Mr Trump told Fox News his future vision for Gaza was to build multiple “safe communities, a little bit away from where they are, where all of this danger is”, adding the area is currently “not habitable”.

He said he believed he could cut a deal with Jordan or Egypt to take people in.

However, Arab allies – including Egypt and Saudi Arabia – have dismissed the idea of relocating Gaza’s two-million-plus population.

Western countries have also rejected the proposal; an independent state for Palestinians remains the favoured way forward but is a no-go for the Israeli government.

When asked in the media, Palestinians have also rubbished the idea.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has supported Mr Trump’s controversial proposal.

Much of Gaza lies in ruins due to Israel‘s attempt to wipe out Hamas after its 2023 terror attack that killed around 1,200 people in Israel.

About 250 were also kidnapped, but those still alive have started to be released in recent weeks after a hard-won truce took effect last month.

Since the ceasefire began on 19 January, five swaps have taken place – with 16 Israeli and five Thai hostages released.

In total, Israel has said it will release up to 1,904 Palestinian prisoners in return for 33 Israeli hostages during the deal’s first phase.

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So far, little progress has been made on an extension to the first six-week phase of the ceasefire.

A delegation from Israel has arrived in Qatar for further talks amid concern the deal might collapse before all remaining hostages are freed.

Hamas has said it will delay the release of more hostages after accusing Israel of violating their ceasefire deal. 

It said Saturday’s planned handover would not go ahead, presenting the Gaza truce with its first major crisis.

A spokesman claimed violations had included “delaying the return of the displaced to the northern Gaza Strip, and targeting them with shelling and gunfire”.

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Abu Obeida said Hamas remained committed if Israel kept to the terms, but that the 15 February handover was postponed “until the occupation commits to and compensates for the past weeks retroactively”.

The last release of hostages was at the weekend, when three Israeli men and five Thai men were freed.

They were among about 250 people originally taken during the October 2023 terror attack that killed around 1,200 people.

The hostage deal began last month and more than 730 Palestinian prisoners have been released in exchange. There’s also been a crucial truce in the Gaza War.

Five swaps have taken place so far, with 21 hostages set free by Hamas after 16 months in captivity.

Saturday’s swap was due to see three more Israelis and hundreds of Palestinians released.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will bring forward an assessment with his security cabinet to today, according to an Israeli official.

Defence minister Israel Katz said any delay would be “a complete violation” and he had instructed troops to be on highest alert.

The Hostages and Missing Family Forum called on mediating countries to restore the deal, saying “time is of the essence” and citing “the shocking conditions of the hostages released last Saturday”.

The potential delay comes as President Trump reiterated his controversial proposal for the US to take over and rebuild Gaza, adding that Palestinians forced out would have no right to return.

He said he was committed to “buying and owning” the enclave.

Arab countries would agree to take in Palestinians after speaking with him, Mr Trump said, adding that its residents would leave if they had a choice.

“They don’t want to return to Gaza. If we could give them a home in a safer area – the only reason they’re talking about returning to Gaza is they don’t have an alternative,” he said.

On Sunday, Israeli forces also pulled back from a key passage through Gaza as part of the ceasefire deal.

The four-mile-long Netzarim corridor separates northern Gaza from the south, and hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have now crossed back over.

However, Israel pushed back its withdrawal a few days in protest at the chaotic release of hostages Arbel Yehud and Gadi Moses.

This may be what Hamas is referencing what it talks of “delaying the return of the displaced”.

There have also been examples of Israeli troops shooting at or near Palestinians approaching Israeli forces after being warned to stay back.

The hard-won ceasefire deal took effect on 19 January and is in its first 42-day phase – but so far little progress has been made on an extension.

A delegation from Israel has arrived in Qatar for further talks amid concern it might collapse before all remaining hostages are freed.

Israel has previously said it will not agree to a complete withdrawal from Gaza until Hamas’s military and political capabilities are eliminated.

Hamas has countered that it will not hand over the final hostages until Israel removes all its troops from Gaza.

In what will be seen as a signature act of the new Trump administration, the president and his team have denounced and dismembered the US government’s international assistance arm, USAID, in a matter of three weeks.

It is a decision that will have serious, real-world consequences – and the impact is already being felt in countries such as Uganda.

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The health ministry in Uganda has announced its intention to shut all dedicated HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) clinics in the country. Stand-alone pharmacies supplying antiretroviral drugs will also be closed.

These facilities provide HIV treatments and preventative therapies to millions of people in Uganda, including an estimated 1.5 million currently living with the virus.

An official said the closure of HIV clinics was a necessary response as the country grapples with the loss of funding from USAID.

Directors and staff at the country’s public hospitals have been instructed to offer the same services at their outpatients and chronic care departments.

A USAID initiative called the President’s Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief – or PEPFAR – has bankrolled much of Uganda’s HIV/AIDS relief plan and it’s an initiative that has wielded impressive results.

Specially trained staff and dedicated clinics are credited with bringing infection rates down from 19% in the late 1990s to 5% in 2024.

‘We are still reeling’

Flavia Kyomukama, from the National Forum of People Living with HIV/AIDS Networks Uganda (NAFOPHANU), said she was stunned by Donald Trump’s decision.

“We are still reeling from the shock of what they have done, it is very difficult to understand,” she said. “There was a memorandum of support [between both countries], there was roadmap [towards zero infections] and they make this decision in a day.”

Shifting HIV/AIDS-related care to public hospitals is deeply problematic, Ms Kyomukama added.

These facilities are often overwhelmed, and they offer little, or no, privacy. It is a serious issue in a country where those carrying the virus are badly stigmatised.

“Surveys show 30% of health workers have a negative attitude towards people with HIV,” Ms Kyomukama said. “So, we’re going to see [patients] dropping out [of their treatment plans], drug resistance will increase and we will see more violence in hospital as people with HIV get attacked.”

World is worryingly dependent on US – it now faces a major shock and impossible choices

John Sparks

International correspondent

@sparkomat

The Trump administration’s destruction of USAID will bring about the virtual collapse of the international aid and development system, experts have warned.

The US government puts far more money into humanitarian assistance than any other country.

In 2023, the most recent year for which data is largely complete, the Americans disbursed $71.9bn (£57bn) in foreign aid, representing 1.2% of total US government spending.

It is a spending commitment that has remained remarkably consistent over the years.

The Americans underwrite programmes in 177 individual countries with Ukraine registering as the biggest recipient in 2023. It received $16.6bn (£12.9bn) to maintain government services after the Russian invasion.

PEPFAR, USAID’s best-known initiative, provides antiretroviral treatments to 20 million people infected with HIV/AIDS.

The initiative supports NGO-run groups with an extended workforce of 350,000 people – with many employed at local clinics.

The US also bankrolls key UN organisations, such as the refugee agency (UNHCR). Its total budget of $4.8bn (£3.8bn) is propped up by the Americans, who put in US$2bn (£1.6bn).

Without this funding, it is difficult to see how UNHCR can continue to support tens of millions of refugees in countries including Sudan, Syria, Turkey and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

If the residents of refugee camps are not supported with basic services, they are likely to move.

The question then is how US funding compares to other donors – and the answer is startling.

According to the UN’s real-time financial tracking service, Germany contributed funds in 2024 representing 8% of total humanitarian aid contributions, as did the European Union, with the United Kingdom at 6%.

The world, then, is worryingly dependent on the United States.

Former international aid worker turned consultant Thomas Byrnes said: “The modern humanitarian system has been shaped by a long-term commitment from the US.

“For decades, organisations like the UN agencies have relied on this predictable funding stream to address global crises.

“The world faces a major shock and I don’t think anyone is prepared for it.”

To alleviate the situation, Mr Byrnes said other donors – such as the UK and Germany – will need to make up the funding shortfall from USAID.

But that is highly unlikely to happen.

The United Kingdom, currently contributing $2.1bn (£1.7bn), would need to contribute an additional $1.5bn (£1.2bn) – representing a 74% increase.

For Germany, the required extra contribution would be $1.8bn (£1.5bn), representing a substantial increase of 70%.

Furthermore, Trump’s move comes at a time when Germany, France, Sweden and others are planning deep cuts to international aid.

The world is looking at a colossal funding gap – and a colossal crisis – as the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance rises to 305 million people, Mr Byrnes added.

“We’re facing a perfect storm,” he said. “The brutal math means we’re heading toward humanitarian aid of just 17 cents per person per day.

“This isn’t a funding dip – it’s a systemic shock that will force impossible choices about who receives help and who doesn’t. People will die as a result of this.”

‘It’s total panic right now’

Brian Aliganyira is the director of Ark Wellness Hub, a busy health clinic for the LGBT+ community in Uganda’s capital, Kampala.

The clinic has sourced supplies – such as antiretroviral drugs, preventative ‘PrEP’ therapies and testing kits – from partners who are underpinned by USAID.

Now, the 37-year-old has got a major problem on his hands.

“It’s total panic right now,” he said. “Our response teams are panicking and there is a lot of panic in the community.

“We are telling people to go home and it’s not just [our clinic]. There is no more medication left – or maybe there’s one refill at the most. But people keep asking us, ‘have you got any extra, any extra’?

“Without the support we need, HIV will surge and people will die.”

‘Lives will be lost’

There are some still clinging to hope.

On 1 February, US secretary of state Marco Rubio issued a waiver exempting the PEPFAR programme from the new administration’s cuts to foreign aid.

However, President Trump issued a contradictory order banning programmes designed to “advance equality and human rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex people”.

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The result in Uganda is chaos – and mounting fear.

“Really, we are grieving about this, we are grieving,” Ms Kyomukama said. “Livelihoods will be lost – and lives will be lost.”