‘We’ll oppose Palestinian state, army to remain in Gaza’: Netanyahu plays down Trump’s peace plan

Just hours after US President Donald Trump released his 20-point Gaza proposal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has downplayed it and said he will “strongly oppose” any Palestinian state and declared Israel will continue to occupy most of the strip — even as both of these declarations run afoul of the plan.

As per Trump’s plan, Israel will gradually vacate the majority of Gaza and there will only be a small buffer zone on the Gazan side of the Israel-Gaza border upon the completion of the withdrawal. The plan also mentions a pathway to Palestinian statehood.

However, Netanyahu rejected both of these points in a statement in Hebrew on his Telegram channel.

“Not at all, and it is not written in the agreement. One thing was made clear: We will strongly oppose a Palestinian state,” said Netanyahu, according to AFP.

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Netanyahu further said that the Israeli military “will remain in most of the Gaza Strip”.

Trump’s plan rules out Israel’s occupation, acknowledges Palestinian self-determination

Trump’s 20-point proposal released a map that showed that Israel will withdraw from the majority of Gaza and there will be a small buffer zone on the Gazan side of the Israel-Gaza border. The plan said the withdrawal will be gradual. But Netanyahu has rejected such withdrawal.

Trump’s plan explicitly said that “Israel will not occupy or annex Gaza”.

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As the International Stabilization Force (ISF), an international forces to take over Gaza’s security from the Israeli military until the strip is handed over to PA, will establish control and stability, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will withdraw based on standards, milestones, and timeframes linked to demilitarisation that will be agreed upon between the IDF, ISF, the guarantors, and the Unites States, the plan said.

“Practically, the IDF will progressively hand over the Gaza territory it occupies to the ISF according to an agreement they will make with the transitional authority until they are withdrawn completely from Gaza, save for a security perimeter presence that will remain until Gaza is properly secure from any resurgent terror threat,” said Trump’s plan.

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Separately, Trump’s proposal mentioned a pathway for Palestinian statehood.

With progress in Gaza’s redevelopment and the handover of the strip to the reformed Palestinian Authority (PA), “the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood, which we recognise as the aspiration of the Palestinian people”, the plan said.