Trump seeks surrender, not peace

On Monday, 29 September 2025, US President Donald Trump unveiled a theatrical “peace plan” of 20 points to end the war in the Gaza Strip. Far from promoting a just solution, the proposal can be considered fundamentally Zionist and openly hostile to Palestinian rights. Drafted in collaboration with Benjamin Netanyahu, it symbolises the quiet burial of the two-state solution, reinforces Israeli control, and serves Trump’s real estate interests.

Rather than opening the door to genuine negotiations, the plan demands the political and military surrender of Gaza as a precondition for a truce. Among its provisions are the complete demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip and the immediate release of all Israeli prisoners within 72 hours of a ceasefire. Any progress is conditioned on Palestinians renouncing their fundamental demands, with foreign actors playing a decisive role in imposing terms.

Administration of the plan would be entrusted to a “management council” led by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair—widely denounced as a war criminal and one of the West’s most corrupt politicians—alongside Jared Kushner, Trump’s speculative son-in-law, who once proposed turning Gaza into a luxury Riviera. Together, they would oversee Israel’s phased withdrawal and Gaza’s reconstruction.

The plan also explicitly excludes Hamas and other Palestinian resistance movements from political participation, tying future steps to reforms and guarantees dictated by external powers.

This raises urgent questions for the international community, which so often claims to be committed to human rights: On what conditions is this “peace” based? And who has the moral authority to impose compliance on Israel?

In practice, Trump’s proposal leaves Palestinian resistance groups with two options: either surrender Gaza for his real estate projects and abandon the dream of statehood, or face an Israel that continues receiving weapons, funds, and international backing to perpetuate genocide.

This is not reconstruction—it is guardianship. It is not justice—it is impunity for Israeli war crimes. Demanding the disarmament of Palestinian resistance while refusing to hold Israel accountable for more than 327,000 deaths (as reported by The Lancet) and the total destruction of Gaza’s cities is nothing more than asking victims to abandon their right to self-defence in exchange for empty promises.

The plan was announced without consultation with key Palestinian actors and, tellingly, was never even presented in writing to Hamas before being publicised. This approach—issuing a ready-made diktat with a deadline for acceptance under threat of continued war—makes the “peace offer” a tool of coercion rather than an invitation to negotiate.

Palestinian leaders swiftly denounced the initiative as a document of surrender. Hamas leader Mahmoud Mardawi dismissed its clauses as vague and without guarantees. Ziyad al-Nakhalah of Islamic Jihad described it as a formula for perpetuating aggression. Abbas Zaki of Fatah warned that Arab support for the Trump-Netanyahu plan would only serve to isolate Gaza and erase the Palestinian cause.

The core issue is political. Genuine peace requires, at a minimum:

• An immediate cessation of hostilities with verifiable guarantees;
• Impartial international supervision;
• Humane and dignified release of prisoners and remains;
• Accountability for war crimes;
• Full participation of elected or legitimate representatives;
• And a clear timetable for self-determination.

Any plan that excludes the Palestinian resistance, or omits and indefinitely postpones these fundamental elements, is doomed to be perceived not as a path to peace but as an attempt to liquidate the Palestinian cause under its guise.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.