Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan can be described as a covert double-dealing to cover up overt double-dealing. On the one hand, there are those who dream of huge profits from the reconstruction of Gaza, and on the other, those who cannot do justice to the Palestinians and who dream of satisfying their conscience by temporarily alleviating their suffering, but there is no place for the Palestinians. This unilateral plan, prepared by Netanyahu, US Zionists Steve Witkoff, and Trump's son-in-law Kushner, even if it may the Nobel Peace Committee, cannot fool the world. The plan, which was drafted by those who rejected the peace proposals put forward by the World Court and the UN, without even asking the opinion of the Palestinians, shows what is in the minds of its architects. Its core is that Hamas must release all Israeli prisoners; if that happens, there will be a ceasefire; the Palestinians can continue in their homeland. Even what is a people's right under international law is presented as a concession and a condition. Where has the World Court's order to end the occupation and leave Palestine gone? What happened to similar proposals passed by the UN many times? When will the tens of thousands of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel be released?
The plan includes provisions to disarm Hamas and neutralise the Palestinian struggle for independence. It provides a roadmap to reduce Palestine from a state to a colony again, through foreign institutions and forces. Everything Israel wants is clear; Palestinian rights are unclear. The obligations will be imposed on the Arab world, and the benefits will be snatched by the Western-Zionist powers. Won't a significant change to the plan without the knowledge of even the Arab states that have expressed their agreement with it, be enough to invalidate it? This is another trap. If Hamas accepts it, Israel benefits; if it rejects it, again Israel benefits. It will then be easy to portray Hamas as anti-peace. It would not be wrong to see this as something designed to be rejected by Hamas. This “peace” plan is a mockery of the people who are fighting for their basic human rights, sacrificing their lives. Yet Hamas has embraced the path of peace, highlighting acceptable conditions. Observers say that Trump welcomed it, undermining Netanyahu’s calculations. There are those, even in Israel, who believe that Trump's plan is to give Netanyahu, a loser, a diplomatic cloak to his compromise proposal. Netanyahu, who expected to achieve the goals of destroying Hamas and freeing the hostages and becoming invincible, has not achieved any of his stated goals; he has isolated himself by killing and starving millions. He is trying to curry favour with Trump to improve his image before the upcoming elections in Israel. And then, defying even Trump, the massacre continues. A racist state that retracts what it says, then breaks even that, and has repeatedly proven that no law applies to it, is a perennial threat to peace – not only for Palestine, but for the entire world. Hamas has repeatedly stated that the future of Palestine should be decided according to the will of the Palestinians and in accordance with international law. Who has the authority to say otherwise?
In short, Trump's plan was born with a congenital deficiency. It is a rescue plan for Netanyahu, who is facing defeat. It is a historical expression of racism that even Trump cannot stop the massacre. It is a strategy to bypass international systems. Israel is the one who has violated the ceasefire many times. They are the ones who do not hesitate to bomb the negotiating table when peace talks are underway, who despise world courts and who defy the UN. They demand that the resisting freedom fighters surrender ad call it a peace plan. They erase the Palestinian state and the right to self-rule from the agenda. When Trump, who was found guilty by the courts of his own country, Netanyahu, who has an arrest warrant on him from the World Court, and Tony Blair, who should face trial for war crimes, become peacemakers, law and justice become a mockery. What Trump presents is a colonial trick disguised as a peace and trade plan. Nothing can be a peace plan without the goal of “an independent state of Palestine for the Palestinian people” as its central goal. It is not right to describe as a peace-plan the unilateral orders of murderers that leave the victims helpless and silent. Peace will only dawn when justice dawns. For that, the forces of injustice must step aside, and the authority of international institutions, including the UN, must be restored.