Washington Examiner Commentary Writer Tiana Lowe Doescher reacted to President Donald Trump’s plan for peace in Gaza, suggesting it “might actually work.”
“Donald Trump has brought about Hamas’s worst nightmare in having this unity not just between Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in Israel, but in all the stakeholders in the Middle East,” Doescher said on Tuesday on Fox Business’s Mornings with Maria.
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Trump’s plan is supported by Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Pakistan, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Indonesia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt. This plan was drafted after Trump met with eight Muslim and Arab rulers during the United Nations General Assembly last week.
“The reality of why this pressure campaign might actually work is because Donald Trump has teeth behind the threat. With Joe Biden, there was no ‘if you don’t do this, then bad things will happen,’” Doescher said.
“Trump is clearly saying, ‘Take the deal. Take the deal, and all this ends tomorrow. Take the deal, and we’re giving you back prisoners who committed war crimes after Oct. 7. But if you don’t, Benjamin Netanyahu gets to finish the job,’” Doescher added.
The president upheld his pledge to block Israel from annexing Gaza or the West Bank under his plan. Instead, Israel would release 250 Palestinians serving life sentences and another 1,700 Palestinians who were detained after Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack in Israel. The deal also calls for returning the remains of 15 Palestinians for every slain Israeli hostage’s body.
This plan also includes the disarmament of Hamas and allows its members who give up their arms to seek amnesty. In return, there would be a swift ceasefire and unimpeded aid delivery.
“The only question is: Is Hamas, and the closest thing to Palestinian leadership — are they rational actors?” Doescher said. “My fear is that they are not.”
TRUMP WILL GIVE HAMAS ‘THREE OR FOUR DAYS’ TO RESPOND TO GAZA PLAN
Already, one Hamas senior official, Mahmoud Mardawi, has criticized the plan for favoring Israel. However, Hamas confirmed it is considering the plan ahead of a tentative Wednesday deadline.
As for the future government of Gaza, Trump proposed a “temporary transitional” board consisting of a “technocratic, apolitical Palestinian committee” that would be “responsible for delivering the day-to-day running of public services and municipalities for the people of Gaza.” Trump would oversee this body, called the “Board of Peace,” and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair would also be involved.