Trump's plans are likely to heighten fears among Palestinians in Gaza, which had a pre-war population of around 2.3 million, of being driven out of the coastal strip, and stoke concern in Arab states that have long worried about the destabilising impact of any such exodus.

President Trump called for the U.S. to "own” the Gaza Strip, “level the site” and develop it, explicitly calling for displacing Palestinians from their homeland as the region’s leaders struggle to maintain a fragile ceasefire.

Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said on Wednesday that U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks about taking over the Gaza Strip are "ridiculous" and "absurd" and could destabilise the Middle East.