U.S. proposal for Gaza raises alarms of modern colonialism and occupation

Since Donald Trump’s second term in office, Washington has repeatedly promoted schemes that violate the rights of Gazans and contravene international law.

According to Hebrew media, the White House is now backing a proposal under which former British Prime Minister Tony Blair would head a temporary government in Gaza. Blair would lead a body called the Gaza International Transitional Administration (GITA), serving as Gaza’s top political authority for up to five years.

Reports from Haaretz and The Times note that the plan mirrors transitional administrations once set up in East Timor and Kosovo. Initially, GITA could be headquartered in El-Arish, an Egyptian provincial capital near Gaza’s southern border, before eventually deploying with a multinational force—largely drawn from Arab states and approved by the UN—into the territory itself.

If implemented, Blair would oversee a secretariat of up to 25 staff and chair a seven-member board to supervise an executive authority tasked with governing Gaza.

The Guardian wrote that any such role for the former UK Labour leader would trigger intense controversy. After leaving office in 2007, Blair served until 2015 as the Quartet’s special envoy to the Middle East. He is widely despised by many Palestinians—who blame him for obstructing their quest for independence—and across the broader region for his support of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

Trump unveiled the full version of the U.S.-backed plan in New York at a meeting with the Emir of Qatar, Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister, Jordan’s king, Indonesia’s president, and Turkey’s president. Trump claimed the talks were successful, adding: “We are close to reaching some kind of agreement.”

Arab states, however, have stressed they would only contribute to a UN-supervised international peacekeeping force if there is a clear political timetable for establishing a Palestinian state. Critics argue Blair’s proposal does not guarantee statehood, but rather signals a new kind of foreign occupation—different in form but not substance from Israeli control.

The plan has sparked pushback from international organizations and experts.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., urged Washington to scrap Blair’s neo-colonial project.

In a statement, CAIR wrote:

“The proposal that Tony Blair—chief architect of the disastrous Iraq invasion and defender of Israeli war crimes—should govern Gaza is outrageous and obscene. The U.S. must abandon this neo-colonial plan, which insults the people of the region and risks igniting further conflict. Palestinians do not need a British war criminal to rule them. They need freedom, justice, and an end to decades of brutal occupation and apartheid. Any attempt to impose Western rule on Gaza after genocide will only lead to further catastrophe.”

CAIR added: “The Palestinian people, like all people, have the right to determine their own future free of foreign interference or occupation.”

This is not the first U.S. anti-human rights proposal for Gaza. Trump previously suggested that, once the war ends, Gazans should leave the strip and allow Washington to take control. Multiple reports have revealed that the U.S. and Israel have explored deals with African states to resettle Gazans abroad.

Other plans include so-called humanitarian centers under U.S. and Israeli control, which have already resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians. Human rights experts have described these facilities as “death traps.”

Numerous reports confirm that Israeli soldiers and U.S. contractors deliberately opened fire on Palestinians seeking food aid at such centers. Investigations by several media outlets have acknowledged the atrocities committed at these sites.