The Trump administration’s much-touted plan for Gaza represents not a pathway to peace, but rather an audacious exercise in colonial governance disguised as humanitarian intervention. More troubling still is that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has already signaled he has no intention of honoring even its minimal commitments, making this entire charade a cruel deception played on a population that has endured unimaginable suffering.
Within hours of the plan’s unveiling, Netanyahu revealed the truth to Hebrew-speaking audiences.
“The IDF should withdraw… No way, that’s not happening,”
He declared, boasting that instead of Israel being isolated, “we turned the tables and isolated Hamas.” His message was clear: Israeli forces will remain in Gaza indefinitely, regardless of what any agreement stipulates. Israel was never to be trusted and Palestinians now it.
When even the Adelson family-owned Israeli press reassures readers that Netanyahu won’t abide by the deal, we must recognize this plan for what it truly is – yet another instrument for continued occupation and destruction.
The plan’s structure reveals its colonial DNA. At its heart sits the “Board of Peace,” chaired by Donald Trump himself and featuring Tony Blair, whose Iraq adventure left him credibly accused of war crimes. This body would exercise complete control over Gaza’s governance and economy, reducing Palestinians to subjects rather than citizens with agency over their own future. The exclusion of the United Nations from any meaningful role, relegating it merely to aid distribution, signals a deliberate rejection of international law and accountability.
Consider the Orwellian framing: Gaza requires “deradicalization,” but there is no mention of holding accountable those who perpetrated what the International Court of Justice has examined as plausible genocide. The victims of systematic destruction must undergo reeducation, while their destroyers face no consequences. This inverted moral universe permeates the entire document.
The hostage exchange arrangements further expose the plan’s inequity. All Israeli hostages – approximately 40 individuals – must be released immediately, while only 1,950 of roughly 15,500 Palestinian prisoners – or more accurately, hostages – would gain freedom. The vast majority of Palestinians imprisoned without charge or trial would remain in Israeli custody and subject to daily torture.
Point seven contains a damning admission buried in bureaucratic language. “Upon acceptance of this agreement, full aid will be immediately sent into the Gaza Strip.” This phrasing acknowledges what humanitarian organizations have documented for months: aid has been deliberately withheld as a weapon of war and of genocide. Israeli and American officials have consistently denied any starvation policy, even as the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification report declared famine conditions for a quarter of Gaza’s population in August. The plan effectively admits that aid could flow immediately if political will existed – meaning the current humanitarian catastrophe is a choice, not an inevitability.
The proposed International Stabilization Force represents occupation rebranded. This American-led military presence, working with “Arab partners” and “vetted Palestinian police forces,” would exercise indefinite control over Gaza’s security. The plan explicitly states Israeli forces will maintain a “security perimeter presence” until Gaza poses no “resurgent terror threat” – a subjective standard that could justify permanent occupation while the real terrorists are Israeli soldiers’ part of the IDF killing children in Gaza. This arrangement transforms Gaza into a protectorate, externally controlled and internally policed by forces selected and trained by foreign powers.
Economic development under this framework becomes another mechanism of control. The “special economic zone” with “preferred tariff and access rates” would be designed and managed by Trump appointees and international experts, with Palestinians having no sovereign authority over their own economic destiny. The promise to “convene a panel of experts who have helped birth some of the thriving modern miracle cities in the Middle East” evokes visions of Dubai-style development – glittering towers built by exploited labor, benefiting investors rather than indigenous populations.
The plan’s treatment of resistance movements reveals its fundamental rejection of Palestinian self-determination. Hamas and all factions must abandon any political role and accept complete demilitarization under foreign monitors. Palestinians must renounce their right to resist while living under continued Israeli control of borders, airspace, and maritime access.
Most tellingly, the West Bank and East Jerusalem are entirely absent from Trump’s “comprehensive” plan. This omission enables Israel to continue settlement expansion and ethnic cleansing in those territories unimpeded while international attention focuses on Gaza. The Palestinian territories would be permanently partitioned, making any viable state impossible. Statehood itself is relegated to vague language about a “credible pathway” dependent on Palestinian Authority reforms and unspecified future conditions – conditions that Israel and the United States would ultimately determine.
The plan’s few positive elements – allowing displaced persons to return, providing humanitarian aid, rebuilding infrastructure – are either basic obligations under international law or contingent on Palestinian acceptance of permanent subjugation. Promising not to forcibly expel people from their ancestral land is not generosity; it is the bare minimum required by international law and human decency.
Netanyahu’s candid admission that Israeli withdrawal is “not happening” demolishes any pretense that this plan offers genuine relief. He has explicitly stated that Israeli forces will remain “in most of the Strip” regardless of what the agreement stipulates. This is not a peace plan; it is a victor’s terms dictated to the vanquished, with the perpetrators of destruction positioning themselves as architects of reconstruction.
The plan must be rejected categorically. It offers no accountability for genocide, no dismantling of apartheid structures, no reparations for victims, and no meaningful self-determination. Instead, it formalizes colonial governance, entrenches Israeli impunity, and establishes American control over Palestinian territory. It represents a dangerous precedent where powerful nations can commit atrocities, then impose terms on their victims while being rewarded with governance rights.
International pressure brought Netanyahu and Trump to the table. That same pressure must now intensify to demand genuine justice: equal rights from the River to the Sea, full accountability for war crimes, and Palestinian sovereignty over Palestinian land. Accepting this plan would validate the principle that might makes right and occupation rewards occupiers. History will judge harshly those who mistake this colonial fantasy for peace.
Dear reader,
Opinions expressed in the op-ed section are solely those of the individual author and do not represent the official stance of our newspaper. We believe in providing a platform for a wide range of voices and perspectives, even those that may challenge or differ from our own. We remain committed to providing our readers with high-quality, fair, and balanced journalism. Thank you for your continued support.
