Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel would not annex Gaza because President Donald Trump is opposed to the move. Israeli media previously reported that Netanyahu planned to begin the process of annexing the Strip. 

The Israeli leader now says annexation is not the goal. “We have no intention of annexing Gaza or imposing a long-term military regime,” he claimed Thursday. He added that control of the Strip would eventually be turned over to an unspecified governing body. 

Last month, Israeli media reported that Netanyahu was prepared to begin the process of annexing Gaza in order to appease some ministers in his cabinet. “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to propose to the political-security cabinet a plan to annex areas in the Gaza Strip, in an attempt to keep Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich in his government,” Haaretz explained.

Israeli officials said the reversal occurred due to “pushback” from Trump. 

“There is serious American interest in playing a significant role in the future of Gaza, along with other nations,” the official told Israel Hayom. “The overarching objective is the elimination of the terrorist threat and the transformation of Gaza into a model for regional rehabilitation. We are closely coordinated with Washington on this, including on the question of governance and sovereignty in Gaza moving forward.”

Trump has discussed a plan for the Palestinians to be removed from Gaza, and the Strip turned into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”