President Donald Trump on Tuesday dismissed claims he would buy Gaza after announcing last week that the United States should “own” the Palestinian enclave.

“There is nothing to buy,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “It’s Gaza. It’s a war-torn area. We’re going to take it, we’re going to hold it, we’re going to cherish it, we’re going to get it going eventually, where a lot of jobs are going to be created for the people in the Middle East. It’s going to be for the people in the Middle East. But I think it could be a diamond.”