No Plan B: Trump’s Gaza plan sidelines justice and law |
Donald Trump’s so-called Peace Board for Gaza promises reconstruction but delivers domination. With Palestinians excluded and international law sidelined, the plan exposes the urgent need for a credible alternative grounded in justice, accountability and self-determination.
Claimed to rebuild Gaza and promote peace, the Trump Peace Board displays the same deception and plan for domination which characterises US foreign and domestic policy under that President.
Because the Peace Board is touted as the only game in town, political leaders have hobbled themselves with dilemmas: join the Board and show loyalty to Trump, or refuse to join, and remain powerless because there is no Plan B. In their compliance with bullies, and in the hollowness of claims about respect for international law, they have contributed to that powerlessness.
A cursory appraisal of the Trump initiative offers some guidance on the principles needed for any Plan B. Western leaders – including in Canberra – could replace passivity and thoughtlessness with ideas for a genuine peace with justice in Palestine and beyond. But that requires first recognising Trump’s so-called peace-making claims for what they are: plans for commercial and political domination.
US ridicule of the UN coupled to deception about Security Council resolutions set the stage for the Trump promotion. On November 17 2025, Security Council Resolution 2803 established a Board of Peace to set benchmarks for Israeli withdrawal from Gaza and for Hamas disarmament. A second draft included a clause supporting Palestinian self-determination and statehood, but was replaced by Trump boasting that as the peacemaker, his Board should take control and implement a ceasefire over Gaza.
The imperialist features of the Trump plans start with ensuring no agency for Palestinians.........