Donald Trump said the U.S. should take control of the devastated Gaza Strip, shunt the area¡¯s residents to other countries and rebuild it into a new ¡°Riviera,¡± a proposal at odds with Mideast reality and America¡¯s fraught history in the region that quickly drew sharp opposition from Saudi Arabia.

¡°The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip,¡± Trump said Tuesday during a White House news conference alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. ¡°We¡¯ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site.¡±

Trump ¡ª who has long railed against America¡¯s ¡°forever wars¡± ¡ª even suggested he would be open to deploying U.S. troops to secure the area, saying he would ¡°do what is necessary.¡± He said he saw the U.S. presence in the contested territory as a ¡°long-term ownership position.¡±