RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) — Driven out of Gaza two decades ago by Hamas, strapped for cash and headquartered in the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority’s hopes of running a future Palestinian state have long seemed bleak.
Its prospects, however, appeared to brighten briefly on Monday when US President Donald Trump announced a plan to end the Gaza war that hinted at a future role for the PA and its 89-year-old leader President Mahmoud Abbas, who hasn’t faced an election since 2005.
Yet the terms laid out in Trump’s 20-point plan require the PA to carry out difficult reforms before it can run Gaza again, setting a tricky path for its return to the territory where Israel has said it can play no role and where it faces opposition from its longtime rival Hamas.
While its ties with Washington have fluctuated sharply over the years, the PA is recognized by the UN, European Union, Arab League and most countries around the world as the Palestinian people’s legitimate representative. It has been the primary interlocutor for international efforts to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and agree a two-state solution.
However, Ghassan Khatib, a professor of international studies and political science at Birzeit University in the West Bank and a former PA minister, said the Trump plan left only “a theoretical possibility” for a future PA role in Gaza, with “many minefields and conditions.”
“This plan is not good for the PA, and it’s not good for Palestinian political aspirations,” he said. “The West Bank and Gaza won’t be one integral unit.”
Hamas has yet to declare its position on the plan, which promises an immediate end to the war that has devastated Gaza since the terror group attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, and the release of the 48 hostages it still holds.
The Palestinian Authority has long positioned itself as ready to take over from Hamas in Gaza, stepping up promises of reforms since the Biden administration floated the idea of a “revitalized” PA running a post-war Gaza.
Trump’s plan foresees Gaza run by a transitional, apolitical Palestinian committee overseen by an international body chaired by Trump “until such time” as the PA has completed reforms – including what Palestinian analysts see as politically tough demands laid out in his 2020 peace plan.
The plan would also deploy an international stabilization force which would train and support vetted Palestinian police, in consultation with Jordan and Egypt.
The Palestinian force, to be trained in Egypt and Jordan, would have a chain of command distinct from the PA, a senior Jordanian official said. Funding and oversight would be arranged through an Arab-Islamic mechanism, with salaries not tied directly to the PA.
The US State Department said Washington was focused on ending the Gaza war and Hamas’ rule there, freeing hostages and delivering vital aid. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
When it was established in 1994, the Palestinians hoped the PA would be a stepping stone towards a state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
That goal appears more elusive than ever despite recent steps by Western states recognizing Palestine.
Israel’s settlement building has accelerated and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected Palestinian statehood, calling it a threat to Israel.
Donor states have long urged the PA to tackle corruption.
Other demands include overhauling school curricula. Netanyahu, in a September 26 UN speech, said Palestinian textbooks teach children “to hate Jews and destroy the Jewish state.”
Washington has also sought an end to PA payments to families of Palestinians killed or jailed by Israel, dubbed “pay to slay” by critics – a demand reiterated by the US ambassador to the United Nations on Monday.
The PA says it is making progress, noting Abbas abolished a law governing such payments in February. Families now receive support via a social welfare fund, a Palestinian official said.
The PA has also committed to developing school curricula to conform with UN standards.
Palestinian analysts say one obstacle could be the demand in Trump’s 2020 plan for Palestinian leaders to recognize Israel “as the Jewish state.” Analyst Hani al-Masri said this would be an impossible condition for the PA.
Abbas has previously refused this demand, saying the Palestine Liberation Organization, which he chairs, already recognized Israel in 1993. He has noted that 21 percent of Israel’s population are Arabs, most of whom are Palestinian by heritage and Israeli by citizenship.
Trump said that if the PA doesn’t complete reforms in his 2020 vision, “they’ll have only themselves to blame,” adding that the Palestinians enjoyed “amazing support” from Arab leaders.
Saudi Arabia in September pledged $90 million to support PA finances under an initiative also backed by a number of Western governments to help stabilize its finances, which are in deep crisis.
The PA’s coffers, long in disarray, have been under additional strain since the eruption of the Gaza war as Israel has withheld tax revenues collected on its behalf.
Riyadh also co-sponsored a UN conference to support a two-state solution, issuing a declaration backing a transitional Gaza administration under the PA’s umbrella.
Trump’s Gaza plan holds out the possibility of Palestinian statehood, saying that “while Gaza re-development advances and when the PA reform program is faithfully carried out, the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.”
The PA welcomed his efforts to end the war. Abbas aide Nabil Abu Rudeineh told Reuters the PA was following through on commitments made ahead of the recognition of Palestine by France, Britain and Canada: “We are implementing these reforms.”
Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.