US President Donald Trump presented his plan for Gaza to the Israeli Parliament on Monday—which gave him more applause than Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upon his arrival—not as a newly born baby, but as a consummate success that opens a “golden age” in the Middle East. In his hyperbolic and widely applauded speech, Trump described his plan—which made possible the release this morning of the last 20 Israeli hostages still alive in Gaza—as “an incredible triumph for Israel and for the world” and a “shining moment that will be remembered as the moment when everything changed for the better.”
The president suggested that the two years of bloody invasion, with more than 67,000 dead, a Gaza strip in ruins, and children dying of hunger, had left the Israeli leader's reputation so tarnished that all that remained was to put an end to it."I told him, 'Bibi [Netanyahu], you will be remembered for this much more than if you had continued doing this, like this, killing, killing,'" he declared, before"congratulating him for having the courage to say, 'That's it, we've won, and now let's enjoy our lives.'" Before praising him, the Israeli prime minister added,"He's not the easiest person."
The president, greeted with a standing ovation for several minutes by members of the House, said that the Israeli bombing, along with the siege of the capital in which troops advanced and destroyed new neighborhoods, was becoming too"aggressive and powerful," at a time when many did not see the possibility of peace.
He then highlighted the broad support his initiative has received, which the international community has embraced to end the massacre, and how the other mediators have pulled together to bring it to fruition. It is unusual, he said, for"many nations to work together for peace," which on this occasion has ushered in "the golden age of Israel and the Middle East."
First step
The US president's speech came just after the return to Israel of the 20 hostages still held by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which kidnapped them two years ago. This release was the first step in the implementation of the peace plan sponsored by Trump, which now faces a second, more complicated phase: one that will determine how the reconstruction of Gaza, devastated by the Israeli army, is approached, to what extent Israel renounces its occupation of the Strip, and what the Palestinian presence will be in the enclave's next government. This phase is full of unknowns that the US president has declined to highlight.
After the long ovation for Trump, Netanyahu took the floor to thank his American ally for his"decisive role in the return of the hostages." "Donald Trump is the best friend the State of Israel has ever had in the White House," he summed up.
“Today we welcome you to thank you for your great leadership and to present a proposal that has garnered the support of almost the entire world and that brings all our hostages home,” Netanyahu said. “A proposal that ends the war and achieves all our goals. That opens the door to a historic expansion of peace in our region and beyond. You are committed to this peace. I am committed to this peace. And together we will achieve this peace.”
The US and Israeli leaders had previously met briefly in Jerusalem with relatives of the hostages who had been held by Hamas until Monday. According to the image distributed by local media, the meeting was also attended by Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff; Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law, who was also part of the US mediation team; and Ivanka, Trump's wife and the Republican leader's eldest daughter.
