Hussein Agha, Robert Malley, The Guardian - Donald Trump's peace plan for Gaza demands atonement from Palestinians for the horrific acts of 7 October, not from Israel for the barbarity that followed. It calls for Gaza’s deradicalization but not an end to Israel’s messianism. It micromanages the future of Palestinian governance while saying nothing about the future of Israel’s occupation.
It is riddled with ambiguities, devoid of timetables, arbiters or consequences for inevitable eventual violations. If all goes according to plan – if the deal’s vagueness is not exploited to torpedo it; unavoidable clashes over subsequent phases do not get in the way of the first stage; Arab and Muslim states maintain pressure on the United States and the United States gets Israel to comply – life for Gazans will transition from utter hell to mere nightmare. Their condition will shift from defenceless prey to twice-dispossessed refugees in their own land. And still, it would be a momentous achievement.
Israel seldom has enjoyed such unrivalled regional military dominance and has never been more isolated. The Palestinians have rarely benefited from such widespread support, and their national movement hardly ever been more adrift. Neither side managed to convert the tremendous assets they accumulated into tangible political gains.
It took an American president unbound by traditional domestic constraints, immune to laws of political gravity, willing to break with convention, engage with Hamas and tackle Israel, to get this done and provide the parties with what they could accept. For Israel, the return of hostages, a continued military presence in Gaza, and the end of a war that was sapping domestic resources and draining global support. For Hamas, a halt to the brutal slaughter, an influx of humanitarian aid, release of prisoners, ruling out deporting Gazans and annexing the West Bank, and a de facto recognition of the movement as chief Palestinian interlocutor on matters of war and peace.
Hussein Agha, Robert Malley, The Guardian - Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza demands atonement from Palestinians for the horrific acts of 7 October, not from Israel for the barbarity that followed. It calls for Gaza’s deradicalization but not an end to Israel’s messianism. It micromanages the future of Palestinian governance while saying nothing about the future of Israel’s occupation.
It is riddled with ambiguities, devoid of timetables, arbiters or consequences for inevitable eventual violations. If all goes according to plan – if the deal’s vagueness is not exploited to torpedo it; unavoidable clashes over subsequent phases do not get in the way of the first stage; Arab and Muslim states maintain pressure on the United States and the United States gets Israel to comply – life for Gazans will transition from utter hell to mere nightmare. Their condition will shift from defenceless prey to twice-dispossessed refugees in their own land. And still, it would be a momentous achievement.
Israel seldom has enjoyed such unrivalled regional military dominance and has never been more isolated. The Palestinians have rarely benefited from such widespread support, and their national movement hardly ever been more adrift. Neither side managed to convert the tremendous assets they accumulated into tangible political gains.
Shibley Telhami, Time - Gaza, as we have known it, has been obliterated. Over the past two years, more than 10% of Gaza’s population is dead or wounded; about 90% of its population has been displaced; 78% of all structures have been destroyed or damaged; 95% of hospitals have been rendered non-functional; and 90% of the schools have been damaged or destroyed. Facing a dystopian reality, hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have been walking back through the apocalyptic ruins of their neighborhoods and homes.
Rebuilding Gaza would take tens of billions of dollars and decades. In the face of this devastating reality, President Trump’s plan amounts to a hostage release deal, a ceasefire of an uncertain term, and a prayer.
The 20-point Trump peace plan is thin on details and principles. Who will administer Gaza in the meanwhile? Who will offer the billions required for reconstruction in the absence of a lasting political settlement to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? The plan proclaims that Israel will not “occupy or annex Gaza” and Hamas “will not have” any direct or indirect role in the governance of Gaza. It envisions a transitional authority of technocrats led by Tony Blair, the former British Prime Minister, and supervised by a “board of peace” chaired by President Trump.
NPR - The ceasefire remains shaky on its sixth day. There have been reports of Israeli fire killing at least six people yesterday and additional fire today. Hamas is also fighting a bloody power battle in Gaza against rival clans.
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