Trump’s I/P ‘Deal of the Century’ Unveiled

(Actually manufactured by Bibi, Jared Kushner, Avi Berkowitz, et.al.; and Oy; such a ‘deal’ it is)

From early this morning: ‘Trump unveils long-hyped Middle East peace plan which Palestinians have already rejected (WATCH LIVE), 28 Jan, 2020, (with commentary; luckily they’ve archived it)

I haven’t been able to find a transcript, but I swear to the gods that at the end of the joint ‘presentation’, they played an instrumental version of Louis Armstrong’s ‘What a wonderful world’.  We might imagine the Palestinians hearing it Smokey’s way:

Via RT.com Jan. 27, ‘Iran slams Trump’s ‘delusional’ Middle East peace plan, calls on US to accept Tehran’s proposal instead’

Instead of a delusional “Deal of the Century”—which will be D.O.A.—self-described “champions of democracy” would do better to accept Iran’s democratic solution proposed by Ayatollah @khamenei_ir:A referendum whereby ALL Palestinians—Muslim, Jew or Christian—decide their future.

— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 27, 2020

“In anticipation of a strongly pro-Israeli plan, Palestinian leaders in Ramallah and Gaza have also condemned the upcoming deal and called for a “day of rage” on Tuesday. They urged Palestinians to boycott American goods, and remove all US symbols remaining in the West Bank.”

‘Remarks by President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu of the State of Israel Upon Arrival’, January 27, 2020, whitehouse.gov (a stomach-churning read, but not as much as the joint presser in the Rose Garden above)

The jerusalem post has some very partial transcripts:

‘Deal of Century establishes Palestinian state, Jewish control of Jerusalem; “I have to do a lot for the Palestinians or it just wouldn’t be fair.”, Jan 28, 202O

“US President Donald Trump unveiled his “Deal of the Century” together with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the White House on Tuesday.

The peace plan, which Trump said was already supported by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main rival Blue and White head Benny Gantz, would give Israel full control of the settlements and its undivided capital in Jerusalem.

“If they are genuinely prepared to make peace with the Jewish state,” Netanyahu said, “Israel will be there. Israel will be prepared to negotiate peace right away.”

Trump said that the United States will recognize Israeli sovereignty over any land that “my vision provides to to be part of the State of Israel” and will require the Palestinians to recognize Israel as the Jewish state and to agree to solve the refugee problem outside of Israel.

The plan also establishes a Palestinian state with its capital in East Jerusalem.

As part of the plan, Trump will reveal a map delineating Israeli and Palestinian state borders. He said the map will make clear the “territorial sacrifices that Israel is willing to make for peace.”

Trump said the plan will “more than double Palestinian territory… No Palestinians will be uprooted from their homes.”

Moreover, he said that although Israel will maintain control of Jerusalem, the status quo will remain on the Temple Mount and Israel will work with Jordan to ensure that all Muslims who want to pray at Al-Aqsa Mosque will be able to do so.

The president said that if the Palestinians choose to accept the plan, some $50 billion will be infused into this new Palestinian state.

“There are many countries that want to partake in this,” he said. “The Palestinian poverty rate will be cut in half and their GDP will double and triple.” He then called for “peace and prosperity for the Palestinian people.”

But Trump noted that the transition to the two-state solution will present “no incremental security risk to the State of Israel whatsoever.

But Trump noted that the transition to the two-state solution will present “no incremental security risk to the State of Israel whatsoever.

“Peace requires compromise, but we will never require Israel to compromise on it security,” he continued. 

Netanyahu in his speech said that he has agreed to negotiate peace with the Palestinians on the basis of Trump’s peace plan. The prime minister noted several key reasons, but namely that rather than “pay lip service to Israel’s security,” the president “recognizes that Israel must have sovereignty in places that enable Israel to defend itself by itself.

“For too long, the heart of Israel has been outrageously branded as illegally occupied territory,” Netanyahu continued. “Today, Mr. President, you are puncturing this big lie. You are recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over all Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria – large and small alike.”

However, Israel agreed that it will maintain the status quo in all areas that the peace plan does not designate as Jewish for four years to allow for an opportunity for negotiation. At the same time, as per the plan, Israel will immediately apply sovereignty over the Jordan Valley and other areas that the plan does recognize as Israeli.

‘The ‘Deal of the Century’: What are its key points?’, jpost.com, Jan. 28, 2020

Borders: Trump’s plan features a map of what Israel’s new borders will be should it enact the plan fully. Israel retains 20% of the West Bank, and will lose a small amount of land in the Negev, near the Gaza-Egypt border. The Palestinians will have a pathway to a state on 80% of the West Bank. Israel will maintain control of all borders. This is the first time a US president has provided a detailed map of this kind.

Jerusalem: The Palestinians will have a capital in Jerusalem based on northern and eastern neighborhoods that are outside the Israeli security fence – Kfar Aqab, Abu Dis and half of Shuafat.

Settlements: Israel would retain the Jordan Valley and all Israeli settlements in the West Bank, in the broadest definition possible, meaning not the municipal borders of each settlement, but their security perimeters. This also includes 15 isolated settlements, which will be enclaves within an eventual Palestinian state, unable to expand for four years. The IDF will have access to the isolated settlements. In order for the settlement part of the plan to go into effect, Israel will have to take action to apply sovereignty to the settlements.

Security: Israel will be in control of security from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea. The IDF will not have to leave the West Bank. No change to Israel’s approach to Judea and Samaria would be needed.

Palestinian State: The plan does not include immediate recognition of a Palestinian state; rather, it expects a willingness on Israel’s part to create a pathway towards Palestinian statehood based on specific territory, which is 80% of Judea and Samaria, including areas A and B and half of Area C. The state will only come into existence in four years if the Palestinians accept the plan, if the Palestinian Authority stops paying terrorists and inciting terror, and Hamas and Islamic Jihad put down its weapons. In addition, the American plan calls on the Palestinians to give up corruption, respect human rights, freedom of religion and a free press, so that they don’t have a failed state. If those conditions are met, the US will recognize a Palestinian state and implement a massive economic plan to assist it.

Refugees: A limited number of Palestinian refugees and their descendants will be allowed into the Palestinian state. None will enter Israel.”

On the other hand, from mondoweiss.net:  ‘The ‘Deal of the Century’ is Apartheid, Sheena Anne Arackal January 28, 2020  (some outtakes)

“With great fanfare, President Trump finally unveiled his long-anticipated Middle East peace proposal. The proposal was labeled ‘The Deal of the Century’ because it was supposed to offer an even-handed and just solution to one of the world’s most intractable conflicts. Instead it does something very different. The ‘Deal of the Century’ resurrects and restores grand apartheid, a racist political system that should have been left in the dustbins of history.

Under President Trump’s newly unveiled peace plan, the Palestinians will be granted limited autonomy within a Palestinian homeland that consists of multiple non-contiguous enclaves scattered throughout the West Bank and Gaza. The government of Israel will retain security control over the Palestinian enclaves and will continue to control Palestinian borders, airspace, aquifers, maritime waters, and electromagnetic spectrum. Israel will be allowed to annex the Jordan Valley and Jewish communities in the West Bank. The Palestinians will be allowed to select the leaders of their new homeland but will have no political rights in Israel, the state that actually rules over them.”

‘Trump unveils peace plan, promising more land and control for Israel’, Yumna Patel, January 28, 2020, mondowiess.net (a few snippets)

“The room was filled with familiar faces  — Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, Jason Greenblatt, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Sara Netanyahu, and US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, Israeli Ambassador to the US Ron Dermer — and dozens of Israel’s supporters, who clapped and cheered throughout the announcement.
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“After the press conference, reports surfaced saying that Netanyahu would be announcing Israel’s full annexation of the settlements in the West Bank on Sunday, and that Ambassador Friedman expressed that Israel was “free to annex settlements in the West Bank at any time”

While Trump boasted that his plan would promise a contiguous Palestinian state, doubled in size from its current form, the “conceptual map” released by his administration shows a fragmented and dwindling territory, connected by a series of proposed bridges and tunnels.”
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“We are asking the Palestinians to meet the challenges of peaceful coexistence,” Trump said.

“This includes adopting basic laws enshrining human rights, protecting against political and financial corruption…ending incitement of hatred against Israel, and ending financial compensation to terrorists,” he said, referring to pensions paid by the Palestinian Authority to the families of prisoners and martyrs.

In his speech, Netanyahu demanded that Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish State, and that Israel will maintain military control of the entire Jordan Valley to establish a permanent eastern border in the area.”
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“Throughout his speech, Trump repeatedly praised Israel for “wanting peace badly,” and praised Netanyahu for “willing to endorse the plan as the basis for direct negotiations.”

He boasted about everything he has done for Israel, listing off the recognition of Jerusalem as its capital, moving the US Embassy to Jerusalem, and recognizing Israel’s sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights.”
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“Over the next 10 years, 1 million great new Palestinian jobs will be created,” he said, adding that the poverty rate will be cut in half, and the Palestinian GDP will “double and triple.”

“Our vision will end the cycle of Palestinian dependency on charity and financial aid. They will do fine by themselves. They are a very capable people,” he said.”

What none of the above coverage had included was that in the video Bibi had high-fived Trump for ridding the Middle East of the greatest terrorist in the world (or close to that, meaning the assassination of General Qassem Soleimani.  Bibi’d also laughed and said ‘It takes someone [like Trump] who knows real estate’.

(cross-posted at caucu99percent.com)