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No Record Backs Donald Trump's Claim of Visiting Gaza

Wesam Abo Marq Wesam Abo Marq
News
10th October 2024
No Record Backs Donald Trump's Claim of Visiting Gaza
No evidence of Trump traveling to Gaza

In a Monday interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, former president Donald Trump appeared to imply he had visited Gaza. However, no public records exist to support this claim. Investigations by Western media outlets, like CNN, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, also found no evidence of Trump traveling to Gaza, either during his presidency or before.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump Claims He Has Been to Gaza

During a Monday interview with radio host Hugh Hewitt, former president Donald Trump seemed to suggest he had visited Gaza.

While discussing his vision for turning Gaza into the "Monaco of the Middle East," Trump described the region as being "in ruins" but emphasized its potential for development.

He said, “I’ve been there, and it’s rough,” and continued, “It was a rough place even before, you know, all the attacks and the back-and-forth conflict over the last few years.”

During his conversation with Hewitt, Trump remarked that Palestinians never fully "took advantage" of Gaza's prime location, waterfronts, and favorable climate. 

“As a developer, it could be the most beautiful place,” Trump said. “The weather, the whole thing, the climate. It could be so beautiful. It could be the best thing in the Middle East.”

No Record of Donald Trump’s Visit to Gaza

After asking for clarification on the former president's claim, Trump's campaign affirmed Monday night that he stood by his claim of having visited Gaza, insisting the statement was accurate.

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A screenshot of The New York Times’ article.

Campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt told CNN, “President Trump has been to Gaza previously and has always worked to ensure peace in the Middle East.” However, Leavitt failed to provide any specific details about the alleged visit and did not respond to CNN's repeated requests for basic information, such as the year of the trip. 

An earlier statement from a campaign official, given anonymously, did not confirm that Trump had actually been to Gaza. Instead, the official attempted to spin the situation, acknowledging that Trump had been to Israel but incorrectly stating, "Gaza is in Israel."

CNN reached out to three former Trump officials involved in Middle East policy to verify the claim. Only David Schenker, Trump’s former Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, responded, stating via email, "As far as I know, he’s never traveled there. He did not go in 2017 when he visited Israel. I think this story is probably already over."

Furthermore, The Washington Post reported that when asked for proof about Trump's visit to Gaza, another campaign official, speaking anonymously, reiterated that Trump had visited Israel but incorrectly implied Gaza was part of Israel.

Donald Trump Casts Himself as Israel’s "Protector"

Donald Trump has positioned himself as Israel's "protector," making his support for the country a central theme of his campaign over the past year. 

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A screenshot of NPR’s article.

His supporters have highlighted key policy decisions from his presidency, such as relocating the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and brokering the Abraham Accords, which established normalized relations between Israel and several Arab nations.

However, Trump has also been vocal about his belief that Jewish voters in the U.S. should support him for these efforts. 

“I think that Israel has to do one thing, they have to get smart about Trump, because they don’t back me,” Trump told Hewitt when asked if Israel would fully recover from recent attacks. "I did more for Israel than anybody. I did more for the Jewish people than anybody.”

Trump Circulates Misinformation

For years, Donald Trump has been at the center of misinformation, both during his presidency and in his current campaign for the 2024 election.

CNN recently reported that during a Monday interview focused on foreign policy, Trump repeated several of his usual false claims while adding new inaccuracies, making at least 11 misleading statements in total.

Misbar investigated the first U.S. presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, held on September 10. The two engaged in a heated discussion that covered a wide range of issues. 

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A screenshot of Misbar’s blog.

In the debate, amid a competitive show of support for Israel, Donald Trump accused Kamala Harris of not backing Israel.

Earlier, in June 2024, President Joe Biden and Donald Trump clashed in their first debate of the election season, where both candidates traded accusations and misleading claims.

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