Trump's 20 point plan to end the war in Gaza is the usual Israeli ultimatum: surrender or be murdered

Given that the US is bankrolling Israel's genocide and has made no effort whatsoever to stop Israel from bombing, starving, and sniping Palestinian civilians for the past two years, skeptics of Trump's “20 point proposal to end the war in Gaza” published on September 29 can be forgiven for doubting that it will end the genocide, much less that it will be a just proposal for Palestinians.

Recall that earlier this year, while Israel continued its ongoing genocide of Gaza, Donald Trump callously boasted about the US desire to own Gaza.

He described Gaza as a “big real estate site” and a new “Riviera,” and said, “We’re committed to owning it, taking it, and making sure that Hamas doesn’t move back.”

Recall also that in September, Israel attempted to assassinate Hamas' negotiating team in Qatar.

The 20 points can be read in full at this link, but it's worth mentioning some of the most important key takeaways from the plan:

• Fighting would stop immediately and the Israeli captives would be released within 72 hours once both parties agree.
• Israel will free 250 prisoners serving life sentences along with 1,700 Palestinians from Gaza detained after 7 October [Note: Israels imprisons nearly 11,000 Palestinians (as of early August 2025), including more than 450 children and 49 women. Since October 7, 2023, Israel has abducted over  2,300 Palestinians from Gaza, including numerous doctors. From October 2023 to early August 2025, 76 prisoners have died in prison, most having been tortured. Three doctors from Gaza were tortured to death, including by raping].

Report of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) “Detention and alleged ill-treatment of detainees from Gaza during Israel-Hamas War”:

UNRWA. Detention and alleged ill-treatment of detainees

UNRWA. Detention and alleged ill-treatment of detainees.pdf

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• Israel will withdraw and refrain from annexing the territory.
• "Security" will be provided by regional and international forces, who will also help train Palestinian police, while aid will be delivered to Gaza at agreed levels. The US will oversee dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis if the Palestinian Authority (PA) implements "reforms" according to US-Israeli demands.
• Gaza will be administered by a temporary technocratic government, with oversight and supervision by a new international transitional body headed and chaired by Trump and Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, among others.
• No forced displacement from Gaza, and reconstruction of the Strip as a "de-radicalized terror-free zone" will begin.
• All 'military operations' will be halted during this period for a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces. Hamas members who commit to 'peace' will be granted amnesty, while those who do not will be offered safe passage to third countries.
• Hamas and other factions agree to not have any role in the governance of Gaza, directly, indirectly, or in any form.
• Aid will be delivered to Gaza at agreed levels, through the United Nations and other international institutions. [Note: In May 2025, Israel imposed the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) as a sole replacement for the UN;s aid distribution, claiming Hamas hinders the humanitarian mission of the foundation. This claim was not true and not proven.]

Unfair, unjust, unrealistic proposal

While lauded in legacy media and by Western leaders, Trump's proposal is an insincere plan not for peace but which really amounts to a surrender ultimatum to Hamas.

Shortly after its announcement, Netanyahu said that the Israeli army will not withdraw from the Gaza Strip. “No way, that’s not happening.”

He also said, “If Hamas refuses [the proposal], Trump will give Israel full backing to complete the military operation and eliminate them.”

The US has already given Israel full backing to commit its genocide in Gaza, so in that regard Netanyahu is correct. But for any who thought he would abide by Trump's proposal to pull out of Gaza, there was never a chance of that.

On October 3, 2025, Hamas agreed to the release of all Israeli hostages, but did not accept the proposal unconditionally, with other elements to be negotiated.

Trump responded by saying,

“After negotiations, Israel has agreed to the initial withdrawal line, which we have shown to, and shared with, Hamas. When Hamas confirms, the Ceasefire will be immediately effective, the Hostages and Prisoner Exchange will begin, and we will create the conditions for the next phase of withdrawal...”

He urged Israel to “immediately stop bombing Gaza” to allow for the safe release of hostages.

The important nuances written out of legacy media reporting on the proposal include:

• Hamas does not accept that the affairs of Gaza, as a part of Palestine, be managed by any non-Palestinian party.
• The entry of foreign forces or a foreign administration into the Gaza Strip is an issue that is not acceptable to Palestinians.
• Israel has no intention to fully withdraw from Gaza.
• Demanding the dissolution of Hamas is to deny the Palestinian people their right to political self-determination.

Further, Trump's proposal to appoint Former Prime Minister Tony Blair to chair a board overseeing Gaza's transition is not acceptable to Palestinians, nor to people who opposed the invasion and slaughter of Iraqis.

Enabling continued genocide and Israeli expansion

The Trump proposal doesn't consider what Palestinians want. It speaks of peace, but in reality proposes a full surrender to an occupying power and giving control to foreign decision makers and forces. Trump and Netanyahu want Hamas to capitulate, drop their weapons, and hand over control to the US and Israel, in the name of “peace”.

In addition to the above points, it must be stressed that Israel never honours ceasefires or its word, instead violating the ceasefires immediately, resulting in the slaughter or more Palestinians (and Lebanese). 

Case in point, just hours after President Trump ordered Israel to stop bombing Gaza, Israeli bombing killed a 3-month-old baby and 14 other members from her family in Gaza City, leaving 20 more people buried beneath the rubble.

Israeli bombing that day killed 70 Palestinians, the majority of them children.

The Government Media Office in Gaza reported 131 Israeli air and artillery strikes across on October 4th and 5th, killing 94 civilians. The Israeli bombing continues.

Former US Ambassador Chas Freeman in recent interview noted,

“This is a peace plan that was never discussed with the Palestinians who have to have something to say about peace. Either they benefit from peace or they don't. There's no benefit to them in this plan...It is the same old demands from Israel: exile yourself, leave or be killed. This is an exercise in colonial rule.”

Indeed, the proposal comes at a time when global condemnation is high of the Israeli genocide and starvation campaign in Gaza. Pitching such a proposal gives the veneer of Trump trying to stop the killing, but in reality, he gives Netanyahu carte blanche to continue killing.

Over the past month since parts of the proposal were enacted, Israel has continued violating the ceasefire with more bombing. On October 29, it was reported that Israel says it has “resumed enforcing ceasefire”. In the 24 hours prior, at the last 104 people were killed in strikes across Gaza, including at least 46 children.