Corridor of Death

Trump, Arab leaders, and Hamas aren’t concerned about what Netanyahu is doing to Palestinians in Gaza.

As Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu meets with Trump today, the situation in Gaza is still terrible, with over 50,000 people dead. Israel restarted military attacks on Gaza on March 18, breaking a ceasefire that had been in place since January 19, the day before Trump became president. Since then, Israel wanted to change the deal, which required it to leave Gaza completely and end the fighting in exchange for Hamas releasing all hostages. But now, Israel wants Hamas to keep releasing hostages without agreeing to stop the fighting.

It looks like Trump’s return to the White House has given Netanyahu more confidence, making him feel like he can do whatever he wants in Gaza with no consequences from the U.S. The fighting also seems to help Netanyahu’s political position at home, distracting from his legal problems. Trump backs Israel’s government because his supporters want him to and because of the influence of pro-Israel groups in U.S. politics.

But Hamas isn’t innocent either. When they attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, they probably knew it would lead to a harsh response against Palestinians in Gaza. They did it anyway, possibly with support from countries like Iran.

Meanwhile, many Arab countries, which are now more focused on dealing with Iran, don’t seem very concerned about Palestinians. Because of this, neither Trump nor Arab leaders are putting any real pressure on Netanyahu to stop. This means Israel could even expel two British lawmakers who were visiting the West Bank to check on aid projects. With no one standing up for regular Palestinians, Gaza is becoming a place of death.