Share this post:
Hamas has said it will release all its hostages, Donald Trump has told Israel to stop bombing Gaza, and Israel says it is preparing to implement a peace plan.
Sounds like peace is breaking out at last – right?
Not so fast.
Hamas’s announcement sounds grand but is hedged with conditions.
Yes, the group said it will release “all Israeli prisoners, both living and dead,” under the exchange formula in Trump’s proposal.
But it also stressed that this depended on the “proper conditions” being met, and that the parts of Trump’s 20-point plan dealing with the future of Gaza and the rights of Palestinians were still up for negotiation.
It is far from settled.
Trump, of course, is desperate to look like a deal-maker.
After giving Hamas a deadline and threatening “all hell like no one has ever seen before” if it failed to accept, he is now presenting the terrorists’ partial acceptance as a triumph.
“I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE,” he boasted on his Truth Social platform. He has told Israel to “immediately stop the bombing of Gaza” – but only so the hostages can be extracted safely.
Israel insists it is “preparing to implement” the peace plan – but it has not accepted the establishment of a Palestinian state, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeated that he opposes one.
So this is no breakthrough. It is, at best, the opening of another round of negotiations.
And those negotiations have a glaring problem.
Never miss a Vox Political post!
Social media algorithms often hide what you want to read. If you’d like to get every article directly, here are your options:
RSS Feed – instant updates, no filters:
https://voxpoliticalonline.com/get-every-vox-political-post-no-algorithms-no-blocks/
Mailing List – updates delivered to your inbox:
https://voxpoliticalonline.com/join-the-vox-political-mailing-list/
Video Mailing List – updates go straight to your inbox:
https://dashboard.mailerlite.com/forms/1503041/155584006128141972/share
Discord Server – direct updates, discussion and campaigns
https://discord.gg/SMCRE39XGm
Telegram Channel – every post, direct to your phone:
https://t.co/be9EMGHXFV
Disarmament without protection
Trump’s plan demands that Hamas disarm, cede control of Gaza to an unelected technocratic body (the one Tony Blair is proposed to lead?) and have no role in the territory’s governance. In theory, this is supposed to create space for Palestinian self-rule and aid delivery.
But what guarantee is there that Palestinians will be safe if Hamas is forced to disarm?
History suggests there is none.
Israel has bombed Gaza relentlessly for nearly two years, killing more than 66,000 people, according to local health authorities.
Before that, there were repeated Israeli assaults, air raids, sieges, and blockades.
The people of Gaza have lived under occupation or siege for decades.
Why should anyone believe that, once Hamas has disarmed, Israel will simply stop killing Palestinians?
The lesson from Yugoslavia
This is where I remember what happened in the former Yugoslavia.
When the wars there finally ended in the 1990s, peace did not come because one side was disarmed and left vulnerable.
Peace was enforced by international troops – United Nations and NATO forces drawn from many countries, including the UK – deployed into the region on a rotating basis.
Their presence created the conditions in which peace could take root.
No side was left defenceless.
All sides were monitored and restrained.
I know because I was there; I visited Bosnia with a charity that was working to help reconstruction; I saw the way the peace there was upheld.
That is the kind of settlement Gaza needs.
Without international peacekeepers, a “disarmed” Gaza would simply be at the mercy of Israel’s overwhelming military power.
Israel: the aggressor nation
Since 1948, Israel has expanded beyond its agreed borders, annexed land, built illegal settlements, and displaced millions of Palestinians.
It has treated the people of Gaza and the West Bank as prisoners in their own land.
The October 7 Hamas attack that killed around 1,200 Israelis was appalling – but it did not come from nowhere.
It was a brutal response to decades of violence and dispossession inflicted by Israel.
To ignore that context, as much of the Western media does, is to tell only half the story.
Hamas’s rockets and kidnappings were not the beginning of the cycle of violence; they were the latest eruption in a war that Israel has waged for nearly 80 years.
And what about the UK?
The UK’s position on all this has been inconsistent and hypocritical.
On one hand, the government has called for a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and improved humanitarian access. It has even suspended some – but not all – arms exports to Israel because of concerns about war crimes (the continued sale of parts used in F-35 fighter planes has been used as a mark of government hypocrisy for months).
On the other, ministers have condemned pro-Palestinian marches here at home – marches that demanded precisely what Trump now claims to be negotiating: an end to the bombing and a release of hostages.
The Home Secretary has smeared those protests as extremist, linking them to the recent attack on a Manchester synagogue. Yet now the demonstrators’ core demand – stop the killing – is suddenly the official US position.
Perhaps the protesters were right all along?
Real peace – or war by other means?
Where does this leave us?
If Hamas truly releases all hostages, and if Israel actually stops bombing, then yes, we may see the beginning of peace.
But only the beginning.
A genuine settlement must include:
-
International protection for Palestinians, not just Israeli security.
-
Equal guarantees against future violence from either side.
-
An end to Israel’s expansion and annexation.
-
A path to Palestinian statehood with real sovereignty.
Without those, “peace” will mean nothing more than Israel continuing its domination, with Palestinians stripped of their means to resist.
That is not peace.
It is subjugation.
The lesson from the former Yugoslavia is clear: lasting peace requires international guarantees and protection for both peoples.
If Trump’s plan – or whatever parts of it are agreed – ignores that, it will collapse as surely as every other imposed “solution” since 1948.
Share this post:
Like this:
Like Loading...
Peace in Gaza? Not if Palestinians are left unprotected
Share this post:
Hamas has said it will release all its hostages, Donald Trump has told Israel to stop bombing Gaza, and Israel says it is preparing to implement a peace plan.
Sounds like peace is breaking out at last – right?
Not so fast.
Hamas’s announcement sounds grand but is hedged with conditions.
Yes, the group said it will release “all Israeli prisoners, both living and dead,” under the exchange formula in Trump’s proposal.
But it also stressed that this depended on the “proper conditions” being met, and that the parts of Trump’s 20-point plan dealing with the future of Gaza and the rights of Palestinians were still up for negotiation.
It is far from settled.
Trump, of course, is desperate to look like a deal-maker.
After giving Hamas a deadline and threatening “all hell like no one has ever seen before” if it failed to accept, he is now presenting the terrorists’ partial acceptance as a triumph.
“I believe they are ready for a lasting PEACE,” he boasted on his Truth Social platform. He has told Israel to “immediately stop the bombing of Gaza” – but only so the hostages can be extracted safely.
Israel insists it is “preparing to implement” the peace plan – but it has not accepted the establishment of a Palestinian state, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeated that he opposes one.
So this is no breakthrough. It is, at best, the opening of another round of negotiations.
And those negotiations have a glaring problem.
Disarmament without protection
Trump’s plan demands that Hamas disarm, cede control of Gaza to an unelected technocratic body (the one Tony Blair is proposed to lead?) and have no role in the territory’s governance. In theory, this is supposed to create space for Palestinian self-rule and aid delivery.
But what guarantee is there that Palestinians will be safe if Hamas is forced to disarm?
History suggests there is none.
Israel has bombed Gaza relentlessly for nearly two years, killing more than 66,000 people, according to local health authorities.
Before that, there were repeated Israeli assaults, air raids, sieges, and blockades.
The people of Gaza have lived under occupation or siege for decades.
Why should anyone believe that, once Hamas has disarmed, Israel will simply stop killing Palestinians?
The lesson from Yugoslavia
This is where I remember what happened in the former Yugoslavia.
When the wars there finally ended in the 1990s, peace did not come because one side was disarmed and left vulnerable.
Peace was enforced by international troops – United Nations and NATO forces drawn from many countries, including the UK – deployed into the region on a rotating basis.
Their presence created the conditions in which peace could take root.
No side was left defenceless.
All sides were monitored and restrained.
I know because I was there; I visited Bosnia with a charity that was working to help reconstruction; I saw the way the peace there was upheld.
That is the kind of settlement Gaza needs.
Without international peacekeepers, a “disarmed” Gaza would simply be at the mercy of Israel’s overwhelming military power.
Israel: the aggressor nation
Since 1948, Israel has expanded beyond its agreed borders, annexed land, built illegal settlements, and displaced millions of Palestinians.
It has treated the people of Gaza and the West Bank as prisoners in their own land.
The October 7 Hamas attack that killed around 1,200 Israelis was appalling – but it did not come from nowhere.
It was a brutal response to decades of violence and dispossession inflicted by Israel.
To ignore that context, as much of the Western media does, is to tell only half the story.
Hamas’s rockets and kidnappings were not the beginning of the cycle of violence; they were the latest eruption in a war that Israel has waged for nearly 80 years.
And what about the UK?
The UK’s position on all this has been inconsistent and hypocritical.
On one hand, the government has called for a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and improved humanitarian access. It has even suspended some – but not all – arms exports to Israel because of concerns about war crimes (the continued sale of parts used in F-35 fighter planes has been used as a mark of government hypocrisy for months).
On the other, ministers have condemned pro-Palestinian marches here at home – marches that demanded precisely what Trump now claims to be negotiating: an end to the bombing and a release of hostages.
The Home Secretary has smeared those protests as extremist, linking them to the recent attack on a Manchester synagogue. Yet now the demonstrators’ core demand – stop the killing – is suddenly the official US position.
Perhaps the protesters were right all along?
Real peace – or war by other means?
Where does this leave us?
If Hamas truly releases all hostages, and if Israel actually stops bombing, then yes, we may see the beginning of peace.
But only the beginning.
A genuine settlement must include:
International protection for Palestinians, not just Israeli security.
Equal guarantees against future violence from either side.
An end to Israel’s expansion and annexation.
A path to Palestinian statehood with real sovereignty.
Without those, “peace” will mean nothing more than Israel continuing its domination, with Palestinians stripped of their means to resist.
That is not peace.
It is subjugation.
The lesson from the former Yugoslavia is clear: lasting peace requires international guarantees and protection for both peoples.
If Trump’s plan – or whatever parts of it are agreed – ignores that, it will collapse as surely as every other imposed “solution” since 1948.
Share this post:
Like this:
you might also like
Jeremy Corbyn has trumped his Labour Party haters – this is what happens when you try to knock a good man down
Like this:
His own colleagues said he was a menace. Now see how Jeremy Corbyn is working to make YOUR life better
Like this:
Russia-Ukraine: third round of talks begins – but will Johnson try to sabotage them?
Like this:
Like this: