When U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unveiled a 20-point Gaza “peace plan” on September 29, the White House East Room felt more like a stage set than a summit of peacemakers. With no Arab dignitary by their side, the optics spoke louder than any promise of reconciliation.
Behind the polished photo op lies a proposal that demands Hamas disarm, surrender all governing authority, and accept sweeping Israeli terms—while offering Gaza residents no enforceable rights or clear path to self-governance. It reads less like conflict resolution and more like conflict management on Israel’s terms.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar was blunt: the public version of the plan bore little resemblance to the draft discussed privately with Arab leaders. Media reports suggest Netanyahu secured key edits, leaving regional partners sidelined and the vision of broad-based support in ruins.
Crucially, the plan omits any roadmap to end Israel’s military occupation or to recognize Palestinians’ right to self-determination—two core issues at the heart of an 80-year struggle. Without them, this blueprint is a band-aid on a bullet wound.
Data from UNICEF underscores the human cost: since the conflict reignited two years ago, an average of 28 children have died daily in Gaza. No amount of White House rhetoric can erase that grim arithmetic.
Even Netanyahu’s allies admit their true aim. Hours before Trump’s announcement, former Israeli ambassador Michael Oren told CNN the proposal wasn’t about creating a Palestinian state but establishing a “pathway” to discuss one—if at all. Trump himself noted Netanyahu’s opposition to a formal state.
Strip away the diplomatic veneer and you see a strategy designed to help Israel achieve its military goals with minimal reputational fallout. Rewarding the occupier while humiliating the occupied does not make peace—it entrenches coercion.
For a durable solution, any genuine peace plan must address the root causes: military occupation, political rights, and a clear framework for sovereign statehood. Until then, this latest proposal remains a hostage deal masquerading as diplomacy.
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Trump's Gaza 'peace plan': A hostage deal masquerading as diplomacy
cgtn.com
