Donald Trump has proposed a sweeping settlement plan for the Gaza Strip. Under the document, militants would have 72 hours after Israel publicly approves the initiative to release all Israeli hostages held in Gaza, including both the living and the dead.
Israel would then, according to the plan, free 250 Palestinians serving life sentences, as well as 1,700 Gaza residents detained after the war began on October 7, 2023, including women and minors. In addition, for each released Israeli hostage, Israel would hand over the remains of 15 deceased Palestinians.
The document also says that Hamas and other armed groups must give up any role in governing the enclave. All military infrastructure, including underground tunnels and weapons production sites, would have to be destroyed, while independent monitors would oversee Gaza’s demilitarization.
After all hostages are released, Trump proposes amnesty for Hamas members willing to accept peaceful coexistence with Israel. Those choosing to leave Gaza would be granted safe passage to receiving countries. At the same time, the plan stresses that Israel would neither occupy nor annex the territory.
Under the proposal, the IDF would gradually transfer the areas it occupies to International Security Forces. A group made up of American, Arab, and other international partners would be tasked with disarming Hamas, maintaining order, and training Palestinian police. Egypt, which has acted as a mediator, has said it is preparing thousands of Palestinian police officers for deployment to Gaza.
As Reuters notes, the US president’s plan calls for a “Peace Council” made up of international observers and chaired by Trump himself; the document also mentions former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, though his role is left unspecified. During the transition period, Gaza would be run by an “apolitical” committee of Palestinians and international experts under the council’s supervision. That body would manage reconstruction funding until the Palestinian Authority carries out major reforms. Trump said Gaza’s economic development would be handled by experts who “helped build some of the prosperous modern miracle cities in the Middle East,” and that the enclave would receive a special economic zone with preferential tariffs.