It may be weird but it's legal according to US laws.
If Trump Organization can help the mess in the region it is fine with me.


International • May 14, 5:56 PM • Modified on May 14, 5:56 PM
[b]Concerns about Trump family's expanding interests in the Middle East
[/b]Author : Fleur Nuijten
The Trump family's business ties to the Middle East have more than tripled since the president's first term, according to a CNN tally. This growing financial entanglement has raised concerns among government ethicists, who say it is difficult to judge whether the American president is acting in the interests of the United States or for personal financial gain.

While Trump is on tour this week in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, his family’s business empire in the region is also growing steadily. In the Gulf States, ambitious plans are on the table for the construction of luxury skyscrapers, exclusive golf courses and cryptocurrency deals.

Saudi Arabia
Typically, American presidents choose one of their closest allies as the first destination for an official trip. Trump does not. After taking office in 2017, he first traveled to Saudi Arabia, and now, during his second term, it is again the destination of his first official presidential trip. According to Ben Freeman, director of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Governance, this points to an “eye-for-an-eye relationship” in which the Saudi regime in particular is investing in Trump’s business interests. “There is a real risk that personal interests will outweigh the national interest,” Freeman said.

Own initiatives
Despite concerns about conflicts of interest, Trump continues his business activities unabated. While in the political spotlight, he even promotes his own commercial initiatives. For example, shortly before the kickoff of his re-election campaign, he launched his own $TRUMP memecoin, which rose in value after the 'Crypto President' promised an exclusive dinner for the top 220 owners.

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Trump meme crypto owners spend huge sum on 'exclusive dinner' with president
Recent Deals
Although the Trump Organization promised in January that the US president would not make any new deals with foreign governments during his second term, a deal was recently announced for a Trump golf course in Qatar. This is backed by the sovereign wealth fund Qatari Diar. Trump also signed a major economic cooperation agreement with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman worth $600 billion.

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Trump Signs $600 Billion Mega Deal With Saudi Arabia
The president also wrote in a Truth Social post Sunday that his administration would accept a replacement aircraft for Air Force One as a "gift" from the Qatari royal family. The plane is technically being donated to the Pentagon by Qatar's Defense Ministry. But when Trump's second term ends, the plane will go to the Presidential Library , a legacy collection of the president's legacy.

These actions by Trump and his company, critics say, indicate a willingness to profit personally from the presidency. White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt denied the suggestion that the president had personal business meetings. "It is ridiculous to suggest that President Trump is doing something for his own benefit," Leavitt said, "this White House is held to the highest ethical standards."

"It's ridiculous to suggest that President Trump is doing anything for his own gain"
Karoline Leavitt, White House Press Secretary
Luxury projects in the Gulf States
While Trump is on tour this week in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, his family's business empire in the region continues to grow steadily.
While Trump is on tour this week in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, his family's business empire in the region is also growing steadily. ( ANP / Associated Press )
Between Trump’s terms, Oman’s government tourism arm worked with the Trump Organization on plans for a luxury resort, including villas and a golf club. Dar Global, the real estate company developing the project, has since promoted new Trump projects in Riyadh and a golf club in Qatar. Ziad El Chaar, CEO of Dar Global, urged people to keep believing in the Trump brand in a recent speech.

Trump’s Middle Eastern projects, many of which have been announced but not yet realized, largely involve licensing agreements with foreign developers. These developers have partnered with the Trump Organization and paid for the right to use the “Trump” name in their projects.

Trump's approach
While previous presidents have placed their businesses in so-called blind trusts to avoid the appearance of self-enrichment, Trump has chosen a different approach. His assets are in a fund managed by his children. According to Eric Trump, son of and vice president of the Trump Organization, the company will remain separate from the presidential office to avoid ethical conflicts. However, critics continue to warn of conflicts of interest as the Trump family's business empire in the Middle East expands rapidly.

The Jerusalem Post May 15, 2025
Senior Hamas officials claims direct talks with U.S. despite denial from American officials

Three Israeli officials told the Post on Wednesday that
"there are no indications from the talks in Qatar that Hamas's position is shifting in a way that would allow for a deal."

Israeli media reported Thursday, citing an interview with Sky News in Arabic
Despite denial from U.S. officials, senior Hamas official Bassem Naim confirmed that the terror organization is holding direct talks with the U.S.

"We believe that President Trump is doing the hard work of reducing tensions in the region, which is what motivates us to continue communicating with the American administration, regardless of the team," Naim said.

Naim also claimed that Hamas told the deal mediators and the U.S. that Hamas is ready to return all the hostages immediately if the terror group receives a promise that it will lead to an end to the war and the entry of aid into Gaza.

The Jerusalem Post May 15, 2025

On the Israeli side, there have been difficulties in renewed hostage negotiations in Doha, and no progress has been made, sources familiar with the details told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday. Additionally, the security cabinet will not convene until 4:00 p.m. on Sunday.

Three Israeli officials told the Post on Wednesday that "there are no indications from the talks in Qatar that Hamas's position is shifting in a way that would allow for a deal. There is no reason for optimism."

Israeli officials said it is possible that Hamas's leadership abroad is "stalling for time" until they learn the fate of Mohammad Sinwar, the Hamas leader in Gaza, whom Israel attempted to assassinate on Tuesday in Khan Younis.

Only the Witkoff framework is viable

A senior Israeli official told the Post that Israel continues to make it clear in Doha that only the “Witkoff Framework” is a viable path to a deal, which includes
1. the release of 10 hostages,
2. a 40-50 day ceasefire,
3. the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails,
4. and a return to fighting if no other deal is reached by the end of the ceasefire.

Haaretz May 16, 2025
Abbas seeks deal to bring Hamas into Palestinian political system

Asharq Al-Awsat reported Thursday that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has asked the leadership of his Fatah movement pressure Hamas – directly or through countries wield influence it – to engage in direct dialogue with the Palestinian Authority.

Abbas hopes to reach a comprehensive agreement through which Hamas would join the Palestinian political system, the report claimed.

Speaking earlier, Basem Naim told Sky News in Arabic that Hamas is willing to relinquish control of Gaza unconditionally if the Palestinian factions can unite into a single national body.

Sources reportedly told Asharq Al-Awsat that Abbas wants "to turn the page and move to a new stage, based on turning Hamas into a political party, through which it would transfer control of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority and obey its decisions, institutions and laws."

The Guardian May 16, 2025
Why is Israel still in Eurovision? The answer is more complex than you might think

The war in Gaza means the European Broadcasting Union is risking its liberal reputation, but to ban Israel would be to undermine the organisation’s fundamental purpose.

As they get ready to watch this year’s final on Saturday, many Eurovision fans will be feeling conflicted. Some will not watch at all.

The reason is the participation of Israel.

Isn’t Eurovision supposed to be about “love, love, peace, peace” (as the 2016 contest’s Swedish hosts so memorably portrayed it)?
If so, they may ask, what’s the besieger of Gaza doing there?

The Times of Israel May 16, 2025
Yuval Raphael advances to Eurovision final after performing ‘New Day Will Rise’

Israel’s Yuval Raphael advances to the grand final of the 2025 Eurovision following her performance in Thursday night’s semifinal.

While those in the arena said a smattering of boos could be heard during her performance, only cheers could be heard on the live TV broadcast.
There were also only a small number of Palestinian flags visible in the audience, despite fears of a strong presence.

Raphael, a survivor of the October 7 Nova festival massacre, will sing “New Day Will Rise” again during Saturday night’s grand final against 25 other acts.

Unlike the semifinals, the results of the grand final will be based on a 50/50 mix of the televote and the jury vote — in which professional juries from all 37 participating countries pick their favorites.

Small dueling pro-Israel and anti-Israel protests were held in Basel earlier this evening. A larger anti-Israel protest is slated for Saturday night.

The Guardian May 16, 2025

Trump has said that the U.S.’s air campaign against the Houthi rebels was “very successful but maybe tomorrow, an attack will be made, in which case we go back on the offensive”.

He made the comments on a visit to al-Udeid airbase in Doha, Qatar.

Prior to that visit, the president attended a business forum in Qatar where he hailed what he said was a record $200billion deal for Boeing aircraft.

A missile launched from Yemen, which triggered alarms in central Israel, was intercepted by the Israeli military as Trump meets with UAE president.

IDF intercepts Houthi missile that triggered sirens from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv.

The Houthis announced that the missile was intended to hit Ben-Gurion Airport.
This is the fifth time the Yemen-based terror group has fired a missile at Israel within the past week.

The Guardian May 16, 2025
Trump says U.S. should 'take' Gaza and turn it into 'freedom zone'

President Donald Trump said on Thursday he wanted the United States to “take” Gaza and turn it into a “freedom zone”, as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in the Palestinian territory, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

“I have concepts for Gaza that I think are very good, make it a freedom zone, let the United States get involved and make it just a freedom zone,” the U.S. leader said in Qatar, adding:
1. I’d be proud to have the United States have it, take it, make it a freedom zone.
2. Let some good things happen. Put people in homes where they can be safe.”

Trump said “the Gaza problem has never been solved.

“Hamas is going to have to be dealt with,” he said “Remember, October 7 was one of the worst days in the history of the world, I think, not just, not just local to this region, it was one of the worst, most atrocious attacks anyone’s ever seen.”

Haaretz May 16, 2025
Cracks in Trump-Netanyahu Ties

Gaza, Syria, Iran: Israel Leaves Itself Out in the Cold as Trump Redefines the Middle East.

Trump's Meeting With Syria's New Leader Proves It: Israel Has Lost Clout With U.S.

The thirty-three minutes President Trump spent with Syria's Ahmad al-Sharaa and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, with Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan joining via video, depicted the outline of the new axis taking shape under the American president's aegis.

In the months following the collapse of former Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime, Ahmad al-Sharaa sought to establish closer ties with Israel Via messages he sent to intermediaries, he signaled Israel that his intentions were for a "cold peace" and strict adherence to the 1974 disengagement agreement.

Israeli and Syrian officials have been meeting for Qatar-mediated talks over the last few months.

From: The Times of Israel May 13, 2025
How a floundering US campaign against the Houthis reportedly led Trump to a truce:

US president wanted results within 30 days, but after $1 billion spent, several drones and two fighter jets lost, Yemeni rebels were still firing back The New York Times reports.

US President Donald Trump’s sudden announcement of a truce with Yemen’s Houthi rebels after two months of an intense bombing campaign came because the military operation was struggling and showed no sign of reaching an imminent conclusion The New York Times reported Monday, citing US officials.

According to the report, though US airstrikes caused some damage, the Houthis had moved significant assets to underground bunkers, limiting the offensive’s effects, and were still firing back at US Navy ships when Trump declared the ceasefire.

It quoted three US officials as saying that General Michael E. Kurilla, the head of Central Command, had proposed a campaign of eight to 10 months in which strikes would take out Houthi air defense systems, after which the US would use targeted assassinations — modeled on Israel’s campaign against the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.

While the Saudis backed the plan and provided a list of a dozen top Houthi officials for assassination, the United Arab Emirates was more wary, the report said.

At 31 days and a $1 billion bill, the president asked for a progress report, administration officials said.
But it showed that the US was heading into an expensive, indefinite military campaign.

Voices in the intelligence community noted that though there was “some degradation” of the Houthis’ abilities, the group could easily regain them, the report said, citing unnamed officials.

The Houthis had shot down several multi-million dollar US drones and were still firing at naval ships, among them an aircraft carrier.
Some Pentagon planners were concerned that the number of precision munitions used was depleting stockpiles that might be needed elsewhere.

US officials said that aside from the seven MQ-9 drones the Houthis shot down — each with a $30 million price tag — the Yemeni group nearly hit several F-16 jets and an F-35 stealth fighter, raising the specter of US casualties.

On April 28 the USS Truman aircraft carrier was forced to make a sharp turn to avoid Houthi fire, several officials said, a move that caused, in part, a fighter jet to fall overboard. Over the next week, a Houthi missile hit Ben Gurion airport in Israel, and another F-18 jet fell overboard from the aircraft carrier.

A US official said that in late April, a video call between US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Saudi and Emirati officials did not produce agreement on how to move forward.

American and Arab officials said that Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Middle East envoy, brought up an Omani suggestion that the US stop the bombing, and the Houthis would agree to halt firing at US ships in the Red Sea as an offramp.

Ah that's great -- that's beautiful -- some deal Trump made...

The deal would not include an agreement to stop firing at other shipping that the Houthis see as tied to Israel, a campaign, along with the direct attacks on Israel, that the Iran-backed group launched in support of Gaza amid the ongoing war there.

By May 5 Trump was ready to end the campaign, according to over a dozen current and former officials with knowledge of talks in the president’s national security circle. His announcement of a truce with the Houthis came two days later.

Houthis and their supporters spread the news on social media with the hashtag, “Yemen defeats America.”

A White House spokeswoman said in a statement to The New York Times that
“President Trump successfully delivered a cease-fire, which is another good deal for America and our security.”

According to the The New York Times the developments indicated that some in the US national security team underestimated the tenacity of the Houthis and overestimated Trump’s willingness to engage in a military conflict in the Middle East. It noted that during his first term, Trump had worked to bring US troops home from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

In addition, General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as his predecessors, had worried that fighting the Houthis would draw resources from the Asia-Pacific region. Trump’s sudden halt to the campaign had surprised Israel, which was still carrying out its own strikes against the Houthis.

The Houthis — whose slogan calls for “Death to America, Death to Israel, [and] a Curse on the Jews” — first began attacking Israel and maritime traffic in November 2023, a month after the October 7 Hamas massacre.

The Houthis held their fire when a ceasefire was reached between Israel and Hamas in January 2025. By that point, they had fired over 40 ballistic missiles and dozens of attack drones and cruise missiles at Israel, including one that killed a civilian and wounded several others in Tel Aviv in July, prompting Israel’s first strike in Yemen.

Since March 18, when the IDF resumed its offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis have launched some 29 ballistic missiles and at least 10 drones at Israel. The sirens warning of missile attacks have sent hundreds of thousands of Israelis rushing to shelters at all hours of the day and night.

On May 4 two days before Trump announced his truce with the Yemeni terror group, a Houthi ballistic missile beat Israel’s defenses and impacted inside the grounds of Ben Gurion Airport, causing damage and minor injuries, and prompting most foreign airlines to institute an ongoing suspension of Israel flights.

From: The Times of Israel May 15, 2025
Rubio ‘troubled’ by Gaza humanitarian crisis, urges solutions to avoid Hamas aid theft:

Secretary says he spoke to Netanyahu but avoids specifying whether he pushed PM to lift blockade;
recognizes criticism of new initiative; asserts he’s open to alternatives;

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday he was “troubled” by the humanitarian situation in Gaza amid a nearly two-and-a-half-month-long Israeli blockade on aid entering the Strip.

Rubio avoided criticizing Israel for the blockade while taking questions from reporters in Antalya, also revealing that he had spoken earlier in the day with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

He didn’t go as far as to say that he had pressed Netanyahu on the issue, and a subsequently issued State Department readout on the call didn’t mention the matter at all.

On April 25 US President Donald Trump told reporters that he had pressed Netanyahu to allow food and medicine into Gaza.
On May 5 Trump said Gazans were “starving” but that Hamas has made it “impossible” to get aid into the Strip.

In an attempt to get around the terror group, Israeli officials were closely involved in the establishment of a new organization called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) advancing a new initiative where aid will only be distributed from a small number of sites in southern Gaza that are secured by American contractors.

Only pre-approved representatives will be allowed to pick up food once every other week from the distribution sites before carrying the boxes to a separate part of a newly established humanitarian zone surrounding the flattened city of Rafah.

“I’ve heard criticisms of that plan. We’re open to an alternative if someone has a better one,” Rubio said, in what did not appear to be a strong endorsement of GHF, which a day earlier issued its inaugural statement.

“We are for all the aid we can get… without Hamas being able to steal it from people,” Rubio added, asserting that the conflict in Gaza would end if Hamas surrendered. “We’re not immune or in any way insensitive to the suffering of the people of Gaza,” the secretary insisted.

“There’s a plan out there that’s been offered — that’s been criticized by some — but it allows people to get aid without Hamas stealing it.
And we’ll continue to work toward that in ways that we think are constructive and productive,” he added.

Trump officials haven’t just provided rhetorical backing to GHF they have met in recent days with representatives from UN agencies and other international aid organizations, pressuring them to cooperate with the initiative and, in at least one case, threatening to cut funding from groups that refuse.

On Wednesday, GHF announced that it would begin operating in the enclave by the end of May and that Israel would lift its over two-month blockade in the interim. The GHF statement also did not address who would fund the initiative.

From: Haaretz May 16, 2025
UN aid chief: 'Let's not waste time' with US-backed Gaza aid plan

United Nations aid chief Tom Fletcher on Friday said time should not be wasted on an alternative US-backed proposal to deliver aid to Gaza, saying the UN has a proven plan and 160,000 pallets of relief ready to enter the Palestinian enclave now.

"To those proposing an alternative modality for aid distribution, let's not waste time.
We already have a plan," he said in a statement as Israel blocked the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza for the 75th day in a row.

From: Reuters May 16, 2025
US reportedly developing plan to move 1 million Palestinians to Libya.

The Trump administration is working on a plan to permanently relocate as much as one million Palestinians from the Gaza Strip to Libya, NBC News reports, citing five people with knowledge of the matter.

The plan is under serious enough consideration that the US has discussed it with Libya’s leadership, the report says.

In exchange for resettling the Palestinians, the administration would release to Libya billions of dollars of funds the US froze more than a decade ago, NBC adds.

Whatever happens, Wilders will continue to support Israel unconditionally

While social criticism of Israel is increasing, PVV leader Geert Wilders continues to support the country. Even his own supporters are not changing his mind.

The so-called Bible belt here will support them forever, even if they dont agree with the current government Israel is the Holy Land.

True but what can Wilders do though in practical terms?

Trump the businessman the pragmatist “might makes right” worldview

The Elephant in the room Trump's first and second final term The difference — Israel was not at war then

Trump’s Middle East trip goes big on deals and diplomacy, but small on human rights.
Deals worth 1.4 trillion $1,400 billion — Israel doesn’t contribute to the bank account”

He was in the region Why the pointed snub — unnecessary and unbecoming of What a 'friend' Israel has / had in Trump: Day 588

perhaps that was the message — sidelining Israel and keeping them in the dark too

Trump only cares about the dollar doctrine he is a businessman, but I also believe he want peace instead of war. Democracy only hold him back in his plans.