BBC
News Briefing
5 February, 2025
Graeme Baker
Hello. Arab states have rejected Donald Trump's plan to "take over" Gaza. International editor Jeremy Bowen explains why the US president's remarks may still have grave effects. Google's parent company has dropped a ban on using AI in weapons research, while scientists in the UK have used new techniques to read a Roman scroll scorched during a volcanic eruption almost 2,000 years ago.
TOP OF THE AGENDA
The consequences of Trump's plan for Gaza
The White House hasn’t ruled out the forcible transfer of Palestinians from Gaza. Credit: Getty
Donald Trump has claimed that "everybody loves" his plan for the US to "take over" Gaza, though Arab states have rejected it. BBC International editor Jeremy Bowen writes that while the plan as expressed by Trump won't happen, it will inject more instability into the world's most turbulent region, and possibly imperil the ceasefire deal. The White House has stated that Trump is "figuring out" how his plan will work, but had not committed to "boots on the ground".
Bowen's analysis
GET UP TO SPEED
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Google lifts ban on using AI in weapons
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Argentina pulls out of WHO over Covid response
President Javier Milei follows lead of US, accusing World Health Organisation of playing politics and not following science.
Why it matters >
Scores of women burned alive in Goma jailbreak
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YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED
Why does Trump want to take over Gaza and could he do it?
Palestinians among thousands who returned to northern Gaza following the January ceasefire deal. Credit: Getty
US President Donald Trump has suggested the US could "take over" and "own" Gaza. The proposal could signal the largest shift in US policy on the Middle East in decades, and upend widespread international consensus on the need for a Palestinian state to exist alongside Israel. But could it actually happen?
Paul Adams, Diplomatic correspondent
Why are Trump's comments so controversial?
In their wildest imaginations, no US president ever thought that solving the Israel-Palestinian conflict would involve taking over a chunk of Palestinian territory and evicting its population. To do this by force would be a grave violation of international law. And many Gazans are ancestors of people who fled or were driven from their homes in 1948 during the creation of Israel.
Could he take over Gaza if he wants to?
It goes without saying that the US has no legal claim to Gaza and it is not at all clear how Trump intends to impose American rule. In a limited sense, American boots are already on the ground. A US security firm has employed around 100 former US special forces to man a vital checkpoint south of Gaza City. But that is hardly a US takeover, something that would require a large-scale military intervention in the Middle East - the sort of thing Trump has long told voters he wants to avoid.
Could there be implications for the Israel-Hamas ceasefire?
It is hard to see how Trump's remarks will help to advance the process. If Hamas feels the end product is a depopulated Gaza it may conclude there is nothing to talk about and hold onto the remaining hostages. Critics of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, have accused him of looking for excuses to resume the war. They are bound to conclude that, with these comments, Trump is a willing accomplice. On the other hand, Netanyahu's right-wing backers have expressed satisfaction with the US takeover plan, making his immediate political future appear more assured. In that sense, he has an incentive to keep the ceasefire.
Read in full
Watch: The moment Trump says the US could 'take over' Gaza.
Strong opposition: Palestinians and Arab states reject Trump proposal.
Gaza in maps: How 15 months of war have changed the territory.
A screenshot from Apple Cider Vinegar shows Kaitlyn Dever in character as Belle Gibson, wearing a lace white dress and smiling as she walks through a crowd of people who are applauding her
And finally... at Oxford University
Researchers at the University of Oxford's Bodleian Library have used AI and X-ray imaging to digitally "unwrap" a scroll from the Roman town of Herculaneum, which was badly damaged by fire during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79AD. Read more to find out what they discovered inside.
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– Graeme
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