As the FT has reported:
Donald Trump held a meeting at the White House with Tony Blair and top officials to discuss a new postwar plan for Gaza, as Israel prepares to launch another invasion of the besieged enclave.
The US president's special envoy Steve Witkoff said the “large meeting” on Wednesday was intended to focus on a “comprehensive” plan for Gaza, where catastrophic conditions have sparked international outrage and a UN-backed panel last week declared a famine.
The arrogance implicit in this meeting is quite staggering.
Was there a discussion of the immediate need to open war crime trials? No.
Was there a discussion of the absolutely essential need to address the health, accommodation, economic, social and political needs of the people of Gaza? There is no indication that there was.
Were Palestinians actually represented at the meeting? No.
Was it Israel represented? Yes, by its foreign minister, who is one of those who should be facing trial in my opinion.
Was it leaked that discussion about the future governor of Gaza must exclude Hamas? Yes, it was. In other words, what the people of Gaza might be offered is something about which those in this meeting think they should have no choice. Democracy is most certainly not being put on the table. With people like Hamas or not, and I am not offering an opinion, denying choice to the people of Palestine is unacceptable.
Why was Tony Blair there? I think we can safely presume that discussion was on the money that might be made, and we do know from reports in the Financial Times that he has been involved in discussions with the Boston Consulting Group, although no doubt the Tony Blair Institute will put a different spin on it.
Is any of this going to provide any solution of any sort to the people of Gaza or a solution to the political issue surrounding Palestine? There is no hope of that.
Instead, what this meeting represented was very old-style colonialism, with the people who think that they hold the power thinking that they can dictate terms to whomever they wish.
Trump, Blair, and all those associated with them might still think they have the right to do this, but the vast majority of the people of the world, including all the BRICS countries, and many of the countries in what we call the Middle East (in itself, a colonial term because it presumes that London, or at least Europe, is the epicentre of the world) would disagree.
What is very clear then is that old and new world views are in conflict, and what the old world view does not realise is that the balance of power is shifting towards a new world view, and there is nothing they can do about it. Those sitting in the meeting in Washington might have thought they held all the cards, but the reality is that they may not even be in the same game as those who will really determine the future of Palestine. All that the dinosaurs in Washington proved is that colonialism should be consigned to history forever.
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Colony not ‘cologne’, second to last para?
So, the UN is to be usurped again this time by a bunch of real estate merchants with skin in the game? Shameful – even without the violence, a war crime, with.
Unacceptable – this will not be forgotten – who are these people are kidding? Only themselves.
Thanks
Edited
Blair is part of the evil cabal that I fervently hope is going to be overthrown while I am still alive.
Last gasp of the erm “liberal elite” – with the usual suspects /war ciminals @ the trough. Oddly, Charles 1st last words on the scaffold @ Whitehall give the “correct” flavour as to how B.liar, Trump, Starmer etc etc regard us (& the poor people of gaza)
“truly I desire their liberty & freedomas much as anybody whomsever; but I must tell you their liberty & freedom consist in having of government those laws by which their life & goods may be most their own. It is not for having a share in government, that is nothing pertaining to them, a subject & soverign are clear different things”
Hobbes Leviathan comes out in support of matey’s views & thus by extension the current collection of liars, chancers, rapists, genocidists and war mongers that pretend to run governments.
We have come to a pretty pass when the populace in England sees no-marks such as Fart-rage as an answer to the current crop – & who to blame? – liberalism – but if you really want to know – just look in a mirror.
My response to this story was entirely visceral. There are no words adequate to describe this dark spiritual and moral abyss.
Fifteen of the sixteen members of the Security Council are agreed that famine is present in Gaza.
Now that Canada, Australia, New Zealand have indicated they will recognise the state of Palestine, that is about all the Commonwealth. A few Pacific island territories persistently vote against recognition joined by a couple of states in Latin America ( Paraguay and Argentine) and Europe (Hungary and the Czech Republic ). Europe is also shifting -Germany is the main hold out.
Public opinion in the West has also shifted. It is the political leadership which is finding they no longer represent the views of the public. The poll Richard published recently about the views of Labour Party members is evidence of that.
I take the view that is not the West v the Rest as it might have been even a decade ago.
The Times they are a-changing.
I am hoping so
Tony Blair is a Thatcher legacy! That and the UK government has no money of its own.
Paul Laverty:
I’m charged with terrorism for wearing a T shirt –
‘genocide in Palestine time to take action’
he says we have the law on our side but we cant implicate it…and calls for an emergency cabinet meeting to stop all arms and other dealing with Israel.
https://x.com/geopoetic/status/1960633266077053319
Should be on main stream news but wont be
New Labour “nothing wrong with making money.” Seems that now it’s “making money out of the misery of 2mn Gazans”.
Would this be classed as profiteering from war crimes?
This “comprehensive plan for Gaza” is the epitome of what the Palestinians, Hamas and all free people’s of the world are, and should be resisting.
The barefaced arrogance that external forces should determine how the Palestinians are to live their lives is what kicked off this whole middle-east crisis in the first place.
How are the ‘great and good’ so incomprehensively incompetent as to not see this?
The answer of course is when you start to factor in greed and personal gain international law and human rights are brutally dispensed with by disgustingly malevolent, “God-fearing” Western elites the wishes and rights of the Palestinians are out the window.
These profound injustices, not least embodied in neo-liberal capitalism, are what we all must continually resist.
With the mindset of these developer ghouls who likely intend to create all these golf courses and gated communities with swimming pools etc., on an ethnically cleansed Gaza, they no doubt think they are doing the Palestinians a favour by creating jobs for them as caddies or pool boys and cleaners etc., that can be bussed in and out from their tented refuge camps, every day after queuing for hours at security checkpoints morning and night for the privilege.
Western politicians and money men are truly disgusting. If any class needed cleansing it is them.
So far only Netanyahu and one other Israeli have been accused of war crimes by the ICJ… many more need to be but the court itself is under attack; judges are being sanctioned along with other critics such as the brave and principled UN Special Raporteur Albanese. Blair and others are leftovers from the “weapons of mass destruction” lies that led to the Iraq war, there seems to be no justice where it is needed most! So much for the so called law and order president and other leaders…plotting to arrange the future for the Palestinians… can they really pretend to believe in democracy? Unbelievable.