Editorial: Shoah and Nakba

NEW DELHI: Prior to the upheavals that took place in Palestine, in the run-up to the founding of Israel in 1948, present-day Gaza was part of a large swath of the Middle East under British colonial rule. During the War, which culminated in Israel defeating the coalition of Arab states, close to 7,00,000 Palestinians either fled or were forced from their homes in what is now Israel — a mass uprooting that they call the Nakba, or “catastrophe.” In the aftermath, the Egyptian army was left in control of a small strip of land wedged between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean, where thousands of Palestinians flocked. Following Israel's military takeover of the strip, Palestinian refugees in Gaza found themselves homeless and stateless.

In a cruel twist of fate, US President Donald Trump said that 23 lakh Palestinians in Gaza would not have a right to return under his plan for US ownership of the war-torn territory. This is in contradiction to officials in his administration arguing that the leader was only calling for the temporary relocation of its population. Last week, Trump floated his plan for the US to take control of Gaza and turn it into the Riviera of the Middle East. The President had subsequently ramped up pressure on Arab states, especially allies like Jordan and Egypt, to take in Palestinians from Gaza, who claim the territory as part of a future homeland. Israel's defence minister went so far as to call out Spain and Norway which were critical of Israel's conduct of the war in Gaza, asking them to take in Palestinian refugees.

Trump's proposal evoked sharp criticism from Arab nations primarily on two fronts. The first is the jeopardising of the long-held goals of a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Even Saudi Arabia, whose rapprochement with Israel is a high priority for both Washington and Jerusalem, has stated that a Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem is a non-negotiable for the recognition of the state of Israel. Secondly, Egypt and Jordan have raised security concerns about welcoming large numbers of additional refugees into their countries even temporarily. Trump has ruled out deploying US troops to help secure the territory, and insisted that no US funds would pay for the reconstruction of Gaza, which raises fundamental questions about the nature of his plan.

Gaza is ground zero for millions of Palestinians rendered homeless by the 15-month long bombardment by Israel that has resulted in over 46,000 Palestinian fatalities, most of them women and children. Trump is setting a dangerous precedent for international relations by proposing a takeover of the strife-torn region. His outbursts, a sure-shot recipe to upset the rules based international order, have been welcomed by Israel's far right, many of whom have long promulgated the so-called voluntary emigration as the solution to the Palestinian problem.

There is no legal authority that can permit the US to unilaterally take over an international territory and forcibly remove its entire population, something that amounts to violation of international law. It would be a gargantuan challenge, logistically, financially and politically for the Trump administration to embark on such a resettlement, which will entail a new era of conflict. Worst of all, it would plonk the US smack dab in the middle of West Asian unrest, from which Washington had barely managed to extricate itself with the Afghan pullout in 2021.