US president has pushed a 20-point plan to ‘redevelop’ Gaza that critics say fails to support Palestinian sovereignty.
United States President Donald Trump has issued a weekend ultimatum for Hamas to accept his 20-point plan for a ceasefire in Gaza, as Israel’s war on the territory grinds on.
On Friday, the Republican leader took to his social media platform Truth Social to denounce Hamas as a “ruthless and violent threat” and to pressure it to accept his proposal.
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He warned an agreement must be reached by 6pm US Eastern time (22:00 GMT) on Sunday, or else Gaza would face further violence.
“If this LAST CHANCE agreement is not reached, all HELL, like no one has ever seen before, will break out against Hamas. THERE WILL BE PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST ONE WAY OR THE OTHER,” Trump wrote in a lengthy, 329-word post.
The Trump administration had discussed the peace plan with a group of Arab and Muslim leaders in September on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
Then, on Monday, as he welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a fourth visit to the White House, he unveiled the full text of the plan.
It does not include a pathway to Palestinian statehood, a major point of contention. And it makes few demands of Israel, whose military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 66,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children.
An independent UN commission in September determined that Israel’s actions in Gaza amounted to the crime of genocide, confirming similar reports from human rights observers.
But the outline does set forth a plan to “redevelop” Gaza into a “deradicalised terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbours”. It would also require Hamas to “agree to not have any role in the governance of Gaza, directly, indirectly, or in any form”.
In exchange, aid will be allowed into Gaza, where famine has been declared for half a million people. An Israeli blockade has prevented adequate resources from reaching civilians, heightening the hunger crisis.
The plan also calls for Hamas to release Israeli captives and the bodies of those who died. Israel, in return, will release the 1,170 Gazans who were detained after the start of the war on October 7, 2023, plus 250 people sentenced to life imprisonment.
The plan also calls for the establishment of a “Board of Peace”, led by Trump himself and helmed by other heads of state, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, as a temporary governance structure.
A separate “International Stabilisation Force” would also be put in place to bolster Palestinian police and work with Israeli and Egyptian border agents.
In Friday’s social media post, Trump repeatedly called the proposal Hamas’s “last chance” to come to the bargaining table. He also reiterated warnings that Hamas would face heavy losses should it fail to acquiesce.
“As retribution for the October 7th attack on civilization, more than 25,000 Hamas ‘soldiers’ have already been killed,” Trump wrote. “Most of the rest are surrounded and MILITARILY TRAPPED, just waiting for me to give the word, ‘GO,’ for their lives to be quickly extinguished.”
“As for the rest, we know where and who you are, and you will be hunted down, and killed.”
In apparent anticipation of further violence, Trump’s message also included an appeal for civilians to relocate to safety, though it was unclear where he hoped they would move.
“I am asking that all innocent Palestinians immediately leave this area of potentially great future death for safer parts of Gaza,” Trump wrote. “Everyone will be well cared for by those that are waiting to help.”
Hamas had said on Thursday that it was considering the proposal and would respond “soon”, but critics, including several government officials, have expressed scepticism about its demands and conditions.
Earlier this week, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar told the news outlet Dawn that the published proposal had strayed from the original plan presented to Arab and Muslim leaders at the UN.
“Changes were made to our draft. I have the record,” Dar said.
Others have questioned the idea of appointing a “Board of Peace” as a transitional governance structure. It is unclear who, besides Trump and Blair, would be leading such a council and what its timeline and end goals would be.
The US has long been an ally of Israel, and it has supported Netanyahu’s campaign in Gaza with billions of dollars in military aid since the start of the offensive.
