As President Donald Trump moves forward with his proposed peace plan to end the war in Gaza, some experts are asserting that the plan would essentially wipe Gaza off the map.
Speaking on the French news network, France 24, Italian journalist for La Repubblica, Francesca Borri, said Trump’s proposed plan, which has been agreed upon by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will create an international governing body inside of Palestine and will result in the elimination of the Palestinian people.
“Arab countries are basically fed up with Palestinians, and not just with Hamas, also with the Palestinian Authority, you know. So they’re just saying, Okay, it’s enough. Because basically, with this plan, with an international administration in Gaza, Palestine is going to disappear. Palestinians are going to disappear,” Borri said.
Trump on Monday laid out a 20-point proposal supported by Netanyahu that would end the war in Gaza and free remaining hostages, leaning heavily into conditions that Hamas has previously rejected.
Trump’s plan calls for establishing a temporary governing committee that would be headed by Trump and include former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. A Palestinian committee of technocrats would oversee civilian affairs, with power handed over later to a reformed Palestinian Authority.
The U.S. president, who has become increasingly frustrated by the bloody conflict, seems to be betting that the militants are now so decimated that they have no choice but to accept what he and Netanyahu are framing as a last, best offer.
“If Hamas rejects your plan, Mr. President, or if they supposedly accept it and then do everything to counter it, then Israel will finish the job by itself,” Netanyahu said after meeting with Trump at the White House. “This can be done the easy way or it can be done the hard way, but it will be done.”
Qatar’s prime minister and Egypt’s intelligence chief presented Trump’s proposal to Hamas negotiators, who are now reviewing it in “good faith,” according to a person familiar with the matter. The person was not authorized to comment and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The Palestinian government in the occupied West Bank said it welcomed Trump’s plan to end the war and pledged to implement the reforms called for in his plan. And the governments of Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia Pakistan, Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates issued a joint statement applauding Trump’s proposal.
While Trump claimed he is now on the precipice of victory in his long effort to forge peace, the prospects of finding an endgame to a war that is coming up on the start of its third year still appeared shaky. Many points of tension remain.
There’s little mention of the goal of Palestinian statehood, what many in the region and beyond say is the linchpin for long-term peace. The proposal largely sidelines the Palestinian Authority until it completes vast reforms. And a requirement for Hamas to disarm has been dismissed as a non-starter in earlier negotiations.
The plan does not require people to leave the Gaza Strip as laid out in an earlier Trump plan roundly rejected by Palestinians and regional leaders.
