If na legacy Trump dey find, e don grab headline sharp-sharp. Di US-backed ceasefire and prisoner exchange don make di guns calm down—for now—and e don give di US President chance to show himself again as di oga wey sabi make deals.
But just small time after di photo-op ceremony finish, Trump no gree talk if e support di two-state solution. Instead, e just yarn say, “we go see as e go be.” Dat kain talk no be strategy; na way to dodge di matter. Ceasefire fit stop war for small time, but e no fit bring peace if dem no get clear road to Palestinian sovereignty.
Di same day, Trump speech for di Knesset dey full of triumph and militarist tone, but e no even mention di suffer wey Palestinians dey face or di number of civilians wey don die. E twenty-point ‘peace’ plan dey focus on mechanics: international force to stabilize di area, technocratic government for Gaza, and donor money to rebuild. Some of di ideas fit reduce di wahala for now, but di main problem be say Trump no wan talk di main thing: statehood. E dey push di matter go front, dey postpone am with interim plans.
Dis kain plan go just keep di conflict for one place, like wetin we don see before with other ‘transitional’ plans wey no go anywhere. Di tone of Trump speech for Knesset show di same problem: no talk about accountability or investigation for di Palestinian deaths. E dey clear say di plan dey focus on how e go look, not wetin dey right.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu don talk am clear since di war start: e no gree for Palestinian state. E even dey vex for Western governments wey recognize Palestine for UN. Di way Washington dey avoid di matter of two states dey give Israelis di impression say dem fit continue to rule over Palestinians wey no get rights, and e dey tell Palestinians say diplomacy no dey bring better result. Na recipe for more wahala once di small incentives wey dey now finish.
For di West, di story dey different. Countries like UK, Canada, Australia, and Portugal don dey show say dem believe say di only way to get lasting peace na to include Palestinian statehood. Even di UN dey talk say any post-conflict arrangement suppose follow international law and aim for two-state solution.
Ceasefire dey important because e dey save lives and fit create space for political talk. But if dem no get clear destination, di ceasefire go just be like waiting room, no be di final solution. Di real issues like occupation for West Bank, Gaza blockade, Jerusalem matter, refugees’ rights, and di permit-checkpoint system wey dey scatter Palestinian life no go solve by just stopping di guns.
Trump plan dey look like temporary crisis management, no be real solution. Di security ideas like international policing and vetted Palestinian forces fit help small, but if dem no get clear end goal, di tools go just dey maintain control without consent. Even if dem rebuild Gaza, e no go work if Palestinians no get control over borders, airspace, movement, and resources. Investors no go put money for place wey no get clear legal status, and families no go rebuild where dem no get rights.
Di humanitarian matter no be small thing. Two years of war don kill plenty people for Gaza, scatter infrastructure, and make life hard for people. Ceasefire fit give small relief, but di main reasons for di violence—denial of political rights and permanent uncertainty—still dey. Without clear plan for Palestinian independence, di wahala go continue.
Di real test for peace na to join ceasefire with clear plan for Palestinian independence, wey UN Security Council go back and follow international law. Dis plan suppose include settlement freeze, transfer of powers to Palestinian government, map for 1967 borders with swaps, and arrangements for Jerusalem and refugees. Trump defenders fit talk say di process suppose take time, but e no mean say dem no go talk di end goal. Naming di destination now go help everybody know wetin be di real steps and wetin no be.
Netanyahu don talk say e no go allow Palestinian state. Trump even praise Netanyahu, wey dey face ICC arrest warrant for war crimes and genocide case for ICJ. To dey praise leader wey get dis kain case and no talk about investigating Palestinian deaths dey make di whole plan lose credibility. If Washington no fit challenge Netanyahu, e mean say dem dey follow di most hardline voice for di matter. Dat one no be how peace go work; na how di problem go continue.
If Trump really wan get Nobel Prize legacy, e go need use e political power to push Israel to shift from di hardline position and also make sure Palestinians reform their institutions to make statehood possible and accountable. Na di same bargain wey serious peace plans like Madrid and Oslo don dey talk since, and e still be di only way wey fit work.
For now, di result dey clear. Ceasefire dey necessary and good, but e no reach. Without clear and credible plan for Palestinian sovereignty, Trump plan na just holding pattern wey get better packaging. Lasting peace no go come from just keeping guns quiet for small time, but from recognizing and giving di political rights wey go make violence no make sense again. Until Washington ready to talk di truth and design policy around am, “we go see” go still be di most honest way to describe any effort for peace for di region.
