Palestinians in Gaza view a future of rule by U.S. President Donald Trump’s newly inaugurated Board of Peace as representing “another form of occupation” said Haaretz correspondent Nagham Zbeedat, speaking on the Haaretz Podcast.
Zbeedat, who covers Palestinian affairs and the Arab world, said that Trump’s vision of an American-led international stabilization force – intended to replace Hamas after it disarms – is likely to be problematic.
American “complicity and cooperation with the Israeli army” during the war means that for Palestinians, “the U.S. is the same as Israel. So any government or group that comes from the U.S. will not be welcomed with open arms.”
In the short-term, Zbeedat said, the desperate humanitarian situation means that Gazans will “accept the circumstances that they are put in, as long as there are no more airstrikes, as long as food is on the shelves, and as long as there is water, shelter, clothes coming in, and medical care.”
But overall, Palestinians in Gaza and elsewhere are “not excited” about the Trump plan because of the lack of “any Palestinian presence or voice” at the decision-making level.
Also on the podcast: Haaretz diplomatic correspondent Liza Rozovsky discusses the challenges ahead for the new Board of Peace – most prominently, the disinterest of major Western European countries in signing on.
“When you are being squeezed and threatened by the U.S. over Greenland, it is pretty bad timing to be joining a Board of Peace chaired by Trump,” Rozovsky noted. For these countries, “giving up your veto power in the United Nations Security Council and just bowing to Trump is not a very attractive offer.”
Read more:
Trump's Board of Peace Finds Few Enthusiasts Among Palestinians in Gaza
Israel's Netanyahu to Join Trump's Board of Peace Alongside Saudis, Qatar and Turkey
Trump's Board of Peace Has European States Worried, but Most Refrain From Direct Criticism
Trump's Gaza Board of Peace Aims to Rival UN, Charter Shows
'It Never Ended': As the World Moves On, For Gazans It's War as Usual
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