When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the White House in February, Trump once again shared his vision for the war-torn location. “The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip. We’ll do a job with it. We will own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous bombs and other weapons,” he said.

Trump's brief comments on Gaza came as he capped the first foreign tour of his second term, which saw him visit several Gulf countries but excluded key ally Israel.

Israeli strikes on Gaza have killed more than 250 people since Thursday morning, local health authorities said, one of the deadliest phases of bombardment since a truce collapsed in March and with a new ground offensive expected soon.