For a few short days after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, the world sympathized with Israel. It didn’t take long for people to forget the murder, rape, burning, decapitation and hostage-taking as pictures and attention moved to focus on the hardship on the people of Gaza.
As Mike Huckabee, U.S. ambassador to Israel, recently said, what Hamas did “was an act of the most vicious, uncivilized terror that we’ve seen … [t]hose are acts of criminal, uncivilized, savage behavior that can only be met with the desire to say: This can never be.”
“Operation Gideon’s Chariots,” the Israel Defense Forces’ military campaign in Gaza, is designed to accelerate pressure with a conquer, secure and hold strategy to further degrade Hamas’s capabilities and aid in hostage negotiations. Like cancer cells, Hamas must be completely defeated from a military and governing perspective or completely disarmed, with their leaders being exiled. Many believe that increased military activity offers the best chance to bring all the hostages home.
At some point in the future, Israeli goals will be realized. They have no other option to prevent future Oct. 7-like horrors. But what about U.S. President Donald Trump’s vision? How do you rebuild Gaza among the vast rubble with masses living in tents and other temporary structures?
Trump suggested, earlier this year, that Jordan and Egypt accept Palestinians to “clean out” Gaza. He added, “You’re talking about probably a million and a half people, and we just clean out that whole thing … it’s literally a demolition site right now.”
The president envisions Gaza as a “Freedom Zone” and the “Riviera of the Middle East,” with economic development to provide jobs and housing. Building a new Gaza has the best and most realistic chance of succeeding of any plan being discussed. As Trump said, “I see it bringing great stability to that part of the Middle East, and maybe the entire Middle East … .”
A key component of the plan is a temporary and voluntary resettlement of the Palestinians in Gaza to other countries to facilitate rebuilding while offering a better life free of terror and violence for those who choose to emigrate. According to some polls, about half of all Gazans would leave if given the chance; the percentage is probably higher if given the freedom to talk with pollsters without fear of retribution.
Unfortunately, obstacles remain.
Thus far, no country has come forth to accept Palestinian refugees in any meaningful number. No leader wants to be the first to “betray” the Palestinian cause and relieve Israel of this burden.
During international conflicts, refugees routinely cross borders to get away from war zones and find safety as neighboring countries oblige. We have witnessed this most recently in Ukraine, Syria and Afghanistan. The sad reality is that the world does not want to see the plight of Palestinians eased, despite the rhetoric, preferring to use vivid daily pictures of destruction as a way to hurt and impugn Israel.
Once again, Israel is being held to an unprecedented double standard. Civilian deaths are being inflated by Hamas and accepted as true. Hamas terrorists hijack aid trucks, stealing food, medicine and other aid, use human shields and kill those who stand in their way. The longer the war lasts, the more world pressure will build on Israel and aid Hamas’s objectives.
To enact Trump’s vision while advancing the war efforts and bringing home the hostages, a humanitarian corridor into Israel should be opened to allow Gazans to voluntarily escape harm’s way. This would accomplish many Israeli objectives in their conquer-and-hold strategy for tightening the grip on Hamas and shrinking its territory, allowing the IDF greater freedom of action. Additionally, humanitarian aid could be provided safely, without fear of terrorists hijacking it. Those seeking to leave would be vetted to prevent bad actors from being embedded among the refugees, and people would be checked for weapons and other contraband.
Hamas will suffer a big public-relations disaster when the world sees pictures of thousands upon thousands of Gazans voting with their feet, choosing to leave their brutal rule. Media interviews of refugees, able to speak freely without fear, would be priceless and further refute Hamas’s lies. Once this process unfolds, the stumbling blocks of relocation to other nations will be reduced.
When Israel took control of Gaza in 1967, the population was less than 400,000. Today, it is around 2 million people.
No Palestinians should be forcibly removed from Gaza, and all should be told that they will be able to return when the rebuilding ends, if they so choose. However, few would likely want to return.
The world may decry this move and twist the reality, but pictures will be seen and real voices will be heard. As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in his speech earlier this year to AIPAC, “You cannot say you support Israel’s goal of destroying Hamas and then oppose Israel when it takes the actions necessary to achieve that goal.”
By taking these steps, Israel will be closer to a complete victory, and Trump’s vision of a freedom zone can be given a chance to become reality.