If Donald Trump won’t ethnically cleanse Gaza, what does he want? The Nobel Peace Prize, apparently.
Some might say he has picked a strange way to go about it.
His announcement that the United States would “take over” Gaza and move all remaining Palestinians out of the Strip – a total of between 1.7 and 2.2 million people – has triggered fury across the world. It violates international law.
It isn’t practical because it relies on the goodwill of neighbouring Arab countries like Jordan and Egypt, that are expected to take in a huge wave of immigrants, and Saudi Arabia, that might be asked to foot the bill.
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And while a large number of Gazans might accept resettlement, simply to get out of danger, more than a million are unlikely to – and this means the United States might have to use military force to remove them. This would be hugely unpopular among those who remember other interventions like that in Iraq in 2003 – and of course Gazans resisted Israel for more than a year before the ceasefire; why would they not be able to resist Americans too?
Jeremy Bowen on the BBC is suggesting that Trump isn’t really interested in “taking over” Gaza, but is just distracting Israel with a false promise of something that country’s government wants – an end to long-term dreams of a two-state solution to the Israel/Palestine conflict – while actually negotiating to prevent Iran developing nuclear weapons.
He says Iranians believe that their country is now sufficiently threatened by Israel and its partners that they need to develop the “ultimate deterrent” to keep the wolves from their door.
That’s a very dangerous position for a country’s government to take because fear can make people take terrifying decisions.
So Trump may be making promises to one side of a possible Israel/Iran conflict while offering peace overtures to the other.
If Iran is amenable to negotiations, then he’ll be able to excuse himself from the Gaza plan, saying talking to Iran is more vital for peace in the region – possibly.
That would raise disappointment in Israel, though – leading to a continuation of this deadly soap opera into the future.
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If Donald Trump won’t ethnically cleanse Gaza what does he want?
If Donald Trump won’t ethnically cleanse Gaza, what does he want? The Nobel Peace Prize, apparently.
Some might say he has picked a strange way to go about it.
His announcement that the United States would “take over” Gaza and move all remaining Palestinians out of the Strip – a total of between 1.7 and 2.2 million people – has triggered fury across the world. It violates international law.
It isn’t practical because it relies on the goodwill of neighbouring Arab countries like Jordan and Egypt, that are expected to take in a huge wave of immigrants, and Saudi Arabia, that might be asked to foot the bill.
Buy Cruel Britannia in print here. Buy the Cruel Britannia ebook here. Or just click on the image!
And while a large number of Gazans might accept resettlement, simply to get out of danger, more than a million are unlikely to – and this means the United States might have to use military force to remove them. This would be hugely unpopular among those who remember other interventions like that in Iraq in 2003 – and of course Gazans resisted Israel for more than a year before the ceasefire; why would they not be able to resist Americans too?
Jeremy Bowen on the BBC is suggesting that Trump isn’t really interested in “taking over” Gaza, but is just distracting Israel with a false promise of something that country’s government wants – an end to long-term dreams of a two-state solution to the Israel/Palestine conflict – while actually negotiating to prevent Iran developing nuclear weapons.
He says Iranians believe that their country is now sufficiently threatened by Israel and its partners that they need to develop the “ultimate deterrent” to keep the wolves from their door.
That’s a very dangerous position for a country’s government to take because fear can make people take terrifying decisions.
So Trump may be making promises to one side of a possible Israel/Iran conflict while offering peace overtures to the other.
If Iran is amenable to negotiations, then he’ll be able to excuse himself from the Gaza plan, saying talking to Iran is more vital for peace in the region – possibly.
That would raise disappointment in Israel, though – leading to a continuation of this deadly soap opera into the future.
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Be among the first to know what’s going on! Here are the ways to manage it:
1) Register with us by clicking on ‘Subscribe’ (bottom right of the home page). You can then receive notifications of every new article that is posted here.
2) Follow VP on Twitter @VoxPolitical
3) Like the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/VoxPolitical/
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
4) You could even make Vox Political your homepage at http://voxpoliticalonline.com
5) Follow Vox Political writer Mike Sivier on BlueSky
6) Join the MeWe page at https://mewe.com/p-front/voxpolitical
7) Feel free to comment!
And do share with your family and friends – so they don’t miss out!
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Cruel Britannia is available
in either print or eBook format here:
The Livingstone Presumption is available
in either print or eBook format here:
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
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