A pro-President Trump Arab American organization, which performed voter outreach on his behalf to the Arab American communities during his 2024 White House run, has changed its name after the commander in chief’s remarks about taking over Gaza. The group’s name was changed from “Arab Americans for Trump” to “Arab Americans for Peace” on Tuesday, according to Bishara Bahbah, the group’s chair. Bahbah told The Hill in a phone interview on Wednesday that the group has thought of changing its name for some time.
“He won, so we needed movement on the momentum on what we have done, and we finally decided to change the name to Arab Americans for Peace,” Bahbah said. “Some in the press tried to tie what the president has said to our changing the name. In fact, it is connected and it’s not.” Bahbah credited Trump for being “able to enforce” the Gaza ceasefire reached last month between the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel. “Peace continues to be the primary motive, and as such, led us to changing the name,” Bahnah said. The chair said the group values the support of Trump and its relationship with him, but “we categorically reject the whole notion of displacing or removing or transferring the Palestinians in Gaza. There is no place for Palestinians to go.”
During a Tuesday press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump suggested that Palestinians in the enclave could be relocated and proposed an “economic development.” “I think you’ll make that into an international, unbelievable place. … I don’t want to be cute, I don’t want to be a wise guy, but the Riviera of the Middle East. … This could be so magnificent,” Trump said, adding that U.S. troops could be used to secure Gaza “if it’s necessary.” The White House defended the president’s remarks Wednesday. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing that Trump has “not committed to putting boots on the ground in Gaza. He has also said the United States is not going to pay for the rebuilding of Gaza.”“The president has made it clear they need to be temporarily relocated out of Gaza for the rebuilding of this effort,” she said Wednesday. “Again, it’s a demolition site right now. It’s not a livable place for any human being.”
Bahbah’s organization mobilized voters in battleground states, such as Michigan, which Trump ended up winning. The president also won Dearborn, Mich., the largest majority Arab American city in the country. “We appreciate the president’s offer to clean and rebuild Gaza. However, the purpose should be to make Gaza habitable for Palestinians and no one else,” Arab Americans for Peace said in a Wednesday press release. “We strongly believe that the only lasting solution to the Israel-Palestine and the Israel-Arab conflict is a two-state solution — Israel and Palestine — living side by side in peace,” the group added. Bahbah said he hoped the president would meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. Abbas said the party won’t allow Palestinian rights “to be infringed upon” and characterized Trump’s calls as “a serious violation of international law.” American allies have also reaffirmed their commitment to a two-state solution, with Saudi Arabia stating it won’t work on diplomatic relations with Israel unless there’s a path for Palestinians to have an independent nation. “The kingdom of Saudi Arabia also stresses what it had previously announced regarding its absolute rejection of infringement on the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, whether through Israeli settlement policies, annexation of Palestinian lands or efforts to displace the Palestinian people from their land,” Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry wrote Wednesday.
