Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Palestine – Leaning on a wooden cane, 72-year-old Fathi Abu al-Saeed navigates the rubble-strewn streets of Khan Younis’s al-Katiba neighbourhood — a daily ritual since he returned from displacement in the coastal region of al-Mawasi following the January 19 Gaza ceasefire. Carefully stepping over debris left by 15 months of relentless Israeli bombardment, he raises his cane, pointing at a demolished house.
“You see that pile of useless rubble”? he says. That and everything in it are worth more than the United States, according to the statement.
His audience — a group of children, including some of his 50 children and grandchildren — listens intently, undeterred by forecasts of heavy rain and strong winds. Other people come along with them: children from displaced families who have also retreated from their former selves to the rubble. They rebuild their lives among the wreckage, leaving no where to go.
Every morning, Abu al-Saeed exchanges words of resilience with neighbours. However, Donald Trump’s most recent remarks about Gaza , his fantasy of removing its Palestinian population from the Middle East, provide fresh ground for his irony and defiance.
“Trump talks as if he’s a king handing out land”, Abu al-Saeed scoffs. He might want to move his Israeli friends to a place other than Palestine and leave Gaza alone.
Trump’s comments, which sparked widespread condemnation, outlined a plan to resettle Palestinians in Gaza elsewhere while the US would “take over” and “own” the territory. Trump argued that Palestinians deserved better than their alleged “bad luck” by standing next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is currently facing an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for war crimes in Gaza.
‘ A prize-winning delusion ‘
Throughout 15 months of Israeli bombing, more than 60 percent of Gaza’s infrastructure has been destroyed, including hospitals, universities, and schools. Washington, under the previous US administration, was Israel’s biggest backer, sending $17.9bn in military aid during the first year of the war — the highest annual total ever.
“This is the talk of a madman”, Abu al-Saeed says. “And as we Arabs say: ‘ If the speaker is a madman, let the listener be sane. ‘ This man knows nothing about homeland, struggle, defiance, pride — or Palestine”.
Dismissing Trump’s comments as absurd, Abu al-Saeed shakes his head. “That’s the best fantasy ever dreamt up by a world leader”, he says, shifting between disbelief and laughter. Any sane person who knows Palestinians is aware that leaving their country is like dying itself. Trump may have thought we would pack up and leave after all this.
For Abu al-Saeed, the idea of mass displacement is personal. In 1948, Zionist militias forced his father to leave Jaffa, which is now part of Israel, and his mother’s family was driven out of Sarafand, a nearby village. He now experiences another catastrophe, the Nakba, and grew up on the stories of that first catastrophe.
“We already know what it means to lose everything”, he says, gesturing at the ruins. However, we are also aware of what holding on means.
The war displaced 90 percent of Gaza’s 2.3 million people. Many have returned, not to standing homes, but to wreckage — cleaning debris, salvaging what they can, or setting up tents atop the ruins.
“Even under genocide, we didn’t leave”, Abu al-Saeed says, his voice steady. “It’s not about having nowhere else to go — it’s our homeland. Our land. We can only hope that the US can offer more than the bricks here.
For a week, Trump has pressured Egypt and Jordan to absorb Gaza’s population, pitching his redevelopment plan as a job-creation project. But even his allies in Cairo, Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and beyond have rejected the idea outright.
“Trump must think we’re living in a hotel he can shut down”, Abu al-Saeed laughs. “But Gaza isn’t a real estate project — it’s our land”.
He taps his cane against the rubble. Our blood and sweat combine to make this earth. No one will leave, despite the threats or promises.
‘ Is he crazy or just stupid? ‘
Sitting on a pile of debris, surrounded by eager children, Abu al-Saeed turns to his 10-year-old grandson, Mohammad, grinning.
Trump advises moving to Egypt or Jordan from Gaza. What do you think”?
The boy bursts into laughter. “Is he crazy or just stupid? Why would we leave? Gaza is part of Palestine”!
The other children chime in, their voices rising: “Who leaves their home? We will stay, rebuild, and fight for it”.
Abu al-Saeed chuckles. “There’s your answer, Trump. Even our children are better than you, in fact.
Throughout the war, Israel’s bombings, starvation tactics, and attacks on hospitals have killed more than 17, 400 children, orphaning thousands more.
“What kind of logic is this”? Abu al-Saeed asks. “They starve us, bomb us, and then act surprised when we refuse to leave”?
You know what will never happen again, he says, citing the unbreakable bond that Palestinians share with their land. Us leaving”.
Trump, he believes, does not understand Palestinians or their struggle. “Israel was built on the lie of ‘ a land without a people, ‘” he says. “But we are here, and we are staying”.
His eyes narrow. “For Trump, like for Netanyahu, the only solution is for Palestinians to disappear”.
Straightening his back despite his age, Abu al-Saeed says, “But we will not”.
Source: Aljazeera
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