20-point plan: can it end the Gaza war?
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has agreed to a 20-point plan to end the Gaza war presented by US President Donald Trump. The plan aligns with Israel's conditions for the post-war period, Netanyahu said at a joint press conference in Washington. The goal is to achieve a ceasefire, secure the release of all Israeli hostages and place the Gaza Strip under a transitional government from which Hamas is excluded.
An ambitious initiative
The initiative faces major obstacles but could nonetheless mark a promising starting point, writes Visão:
“It includes two or three details that will be difficult to implement: a government made up of Palestinian technocrats must be established in Gaza with international support, and the Israeli armed forces must gradually withdraw. ... To corner Hamas, the plan is to be executed in areas already free of its presence as a way to ensure that the Palestinian population feels the difference. ... In short, the plan will be difficult to implement but shows indications that there could be peace and prosperity in the Gaza Strip in due course.”
Hoping for a miracle
The plan is too vague to work, Le Soir concludes:
“One of its obvious flaws is that it provides for individual steps such as the phased withdrawal of the Israeli army, but without a timetable! Incidents on the ground could quickly serve as a pretext for Israel to block everything. ... As for Hamas, it must respond to a strange ultimatum: commit suicide or suffer Israel's deadly wrath. ... And it must release all hostages - whom it considered its last assets - within three days, and hope that Israel keeps its word and doesn't try to procrastinate or even sabotage the agreement. ... In short, the plan is far too vaguely worded and already contains the seeds of its own failure. All we can do is hope for a true miracle.”
The Israelis have had enough of war
Netanyahu had no choice but to go along with this, says La Repubblica:
“Several factors led Netanyahu to accept this compromise. The first is the exhaustion of a country that, after two years of protests and tensions, has had enough of war. And this goes not just for the families of the hostages, but also the families of the hundreds of thousands of reservists who are under arms. Added to this is an economy which, however strong, is paying a high price for the crisis: a decline in foreign investment, lack of growth and chaos on the labour market - the Israeli central bank estimates that between 2023 and 2025 the wars have cost 55.6 billion dollars [around 47 billion euros].”
A clever plan based on a solid template
The Daily Telegraph sees parallels with the deal that ended the Northern Ireland conflict:
“It owes much to the Good Friday agreement, which brought peace to Northern Ireland, the single biggest achievement in UK politics of the last 30 years. Central to both plans is their 'dynamism'. Rather than offering a fixed 'take it or leave it' set of proposals, they offer rewards which ratchet up over years. Through this mechanism, trust - and hopefully peace - is built, not through words, but actions over time. Even the language is similar. In just the same way the IRA was asked not to surrender its weapons but to put them 'beyond use', the same is true of the Gaza plan. Another feature common to the Northern Ireland plan is the idea of an amnesty for terrorists.”
An ambitious endeavour
Middle East expert Igor Semyvolos comments on Facebook:
“The involvement of an Arab-international coalition in the areas of security, administration and reconstruction is an ambitious endeavour, but it is encountering difficulties. Arab heads of state are demanding guarantees, especially regarding the West Bank and the status of Jerusalem, which runs counter to Israel's interests. ... The success of the plan depends on US influence over Israel, which could be limited given Netanyahu's tough stance. Nevertheless, the current Israeli government's room for manoeuvre appears to be shrinking considerably.”
Disastrous for Netanyahu
The plan could put an end to the Israeli leader's career, La Stampa postulates:
“The only person who can push Benjamin Netanyahu to sign Trump's proposed 21-point plan is Trump himself. Only a violent and immediate threat could force him to agree to a deal that would spell the end for him. ... The end of the war, perhaps, but certainly the end of his political career. ... For Bibi Netanyahu, these 21 points on the table represent a potential disaster. The Israeli prime minister knows that if he gives even an inch in these negotiations, which among other things foresee that the Palestinians remain in Gaza, his ministers would immediately abandon him.”
Details still a mystery
Der Standard sees fundamental questions left unanswered:
“The details of the 21 points with which Trump hopes to turn the tide in the Middle East are still unknown - and above all, how to achieve what has so far failed despite months of US-mediated negotiations between Hamas and Israel in which Egypt and Jordan were also involved: namely the release of the Israeli hostages who are still in the hands of Hamas. ... Israel is currently conducting a renewed ground offensive in Gaza City; a nightmare for the population for whom there are no safe places left and whose very existence is threatened by hunger and disease.”