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Oh, Sure, Trump's Been to Gaza—In His Dreams, Maybe!
Oh, fantastic! Because nothing says "peace in the Middle East" like a Clinton sighting—back in '98, the only president brave enough to grace Gaza with his presence. Must have really fixed things, right?
Published October 11, 2024 at 5:01am by
Donald Trump
Statement: Of Gaza, “I’ve been there.”
In an interview that aired on the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, former President Donald Trump—yes, that Trump—claimed he’d been to Gaza. Shocker, right?
Conservative radio show host Hugh Hewitt asked Trump, "Could Gaza be Monaco if it was rebuilt properly?"
Trump, ever the real estate tycoon, said it could be “better than Monaco. It has the best location in the Middle East, the best water, the best everything.” He even dropped the classic Trump line: “You know when — I’ve been there, and it’s rough. It’s a rough place.”
Well, we asked the Trump campaign for details on this supposed trip. Their response? A vague statement about how Trump “negotiated the historic Abraham Accords” and brought stability to the region until—you guessed it—the “Harris-Biden Administration’s weakness” messed it up again.
The New York Times, The Washington Post, and CNN found zero evidence of Trump visiting Gaza. Neither did we. Experts on Israel and Gaza were like, “Nope, no record of that.”
Even Trump-appointed former Assistant Secretary of State David Schenker told CNN: "As far as I know, he’s never traveled there."
A Trump campaign official, speaking anonymously to the Times, claimed: "Gaza is in Israel. President Trump has been to Israel."
Newsflash: Gaza is NOT in Israel. Israel’s been occupying it since 1967, but it’s never been annexed.
Trump visited the West Bank
Trump did visit the West Bank in 2017, meeting with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Bethlehem. But Gaza? No mention. Jerusalem? Met with Israeli leaders, sure.
Bill Clinton visited Gaza
The last U.S. president to visit Gaza was Bill Clinton on Dec. 14, 1998. He spoke to the Palestinian National Council and said: "This is a remarkable day. I am profoundly honored to be the first American president to address the Palestinian people in a city governed by Palestinians."
Clinton cut the ribbon for the Gaza International Airport and stood beside Yasser Arafat. Because, you know, meaningful actions speak louder than Trump’s empty words.
Experts confirm that Clinton’s visit was a big deal. Daniel Kurtzer, former ambassador to Israel and Egypt, pointed out that security in Gaza was bad enough for presidents to avoid.
PolitiFact's ruling
Trump said he’s been to Gaza. His campaign provided no evidence. The State Department’s log doesn’t list it. Experts confirm Clinton was the last U.S. president there.
Lacking evidence, we rate Trump’s statement False.
PolitiFact Researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this fact-check.
Our sources
- Hugh Hewitt show, Interview with former President Donald Trump, Oct. 7, 2024
- White House, Transcript of President Bill Clinton remarks, Dec. 14, 1998
- Clinton White House, Photos in archives, December 1998
- State Department, President Donald J. Trump, 2017-2020
- State Department, Security Alert: U.S. Embassy Jerusalem, Oct. 7, 2023
- ABC News, President Trump meets with Abbas in Bethlehem, May 23, 2017
- New York Times, Trump Says He’s Visited Gaza, Oct. 7, 2024
- CNN, Fact check: No evidence for Trump’s claim he has been to Gaza, Oct. 8, 2024
- Reuters, U.S. warns on travel to Israel, Palestinian areas, Aug. 9, 2007
- Washington Post, Trump claims he has been to Gaza, Oct. 7, 2024
- Council on Foreign Relations, What is Hamas?, Aug. 19, 2024
- Email interviews with Elliott Abrams, Ezzedine C. Fishere, Daniel C. Kurtzer, and Joel Beinin
Read more: Fact-check: Trump said he has been to Gaza. That’s false.