A Deal Without Peace: Illusion on Paper and Blood on the Ground

In the Middle East, the United States has grown accustomed to selling illusions in the name of peace, embedding poison in the honey of its political plans. Words precede actions, deception precedes justice, and diplomatic statements are crafted with linguistic elegance that conceals intentions completely unrelated to peace. Before the summit delegations arrived in Sharm El-Sheikh, the lie of peace was merely a façade, while American cargo planes unloaded their shipments of weapons on occupied lands, delivered to Israel. At that moment, the true face of the plan was revealed as President Trump praised his ally Netanyahu, proudly stating: "I provided you with weapons of which I am unaware of the details, and you made good use of them," acknowledging horrifically that American support is used to kill children and innocent civilians. The so-called declared peace plans are nothing but a veil that covers murder and destruction, hiding the true face of American policy in the region.

Challenges keep accumulating, and the conflict does not stop at the limits of discourse; hidden plans emerge, managed far from the eyes of the world, where humanity is abbreviated in paperwork, and rights are replaced by the power to kill and control.

The Sharm El-Sheikh summit in October 2025 was the last scene in this long play, where the American president met alongside several Arab and international presidents and kings under the banner of "peace and lasting prosperity," and they presented us with a new document carrying shiny promises and idealistic titles, yet it was limited to one clear item: stopping the war in Gaza in exchange for Israeli prisoners without any details about a comprehensive peace plan. What must be noted is that this commitment also came from presidents who are not directly subject to American policy, who announced their willingness to participate for one reason only: to stop the genocide and the killing of children, even temporarily. Meanwhile, the announcement inherently carried a void of action, and its rhetoric covered political impotence in addressing the essence of the crisis.

The "Declaration of Peace and Lasting Prosperity" seemed elegant and orderly in its formulation, yet it offered no actual commitments or clear timelines. There was no talk about the withdrawal of the occupying army from Gaza, no guarantees against the renewal of war, nor even any reference to the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. It was peace written with soft ink but not touching reality—peace on paper, not on the ground.

What occurred in Sharm El-Sheikh was not merely an empty declaration but part of a broader plan launched under the name of "the greatest deal for peace" that claimed to aim at "reconstructing Gaza" and achieving stability in the region. In reality, it was a calculated political show to entrench Israeli domination, beautifying the face of occupation and reselling the idea of "economic peace," which replaces justice with aid and sovereignty with investment. Israel, which destroyed, was not obligated to provide any compensation to the Palestinians for killing civilians and children or for the destruction of hospitals, schools, roads, buildings, and water and electricity networks.

When leaders spoke of "relief for Gaza" and "building a better future for the Palestinians," they ignored fundamental rights: the right to self-determination, establishing an independent state, and commitment to the borders of 1967. Their declaration effectively executed the Oslo Accords that they participated in and sponsored, ending the two-state solution and replacing it with an illusory plan. Clearly, that "humanitarian sympathy" was nothing more than a thick smoke screen concealing a calculated project to absorb global anger and polish the image of occupation.

The Sharm El-Sheikh summit turned into a theatrical scene, meticulously directed, where Arab and Muslim leaders sat alongside major powers to present a picture of "regional consensus" while marginalizing the Palestinian leadership. The Palestinian flag was absent from the main table, and the message was clear: the Palestinians are a subject to be talked about, not with, and their participation is imposed upon them without consultation. Attempts by Trump to gather his ally, war criminal and child killer Netanyahu, with some Arab leaders to absolve him of these crimes failed due to the Turkish stance and some Arab countries' positions, exposing the deep gap between media propaganda and the fractured political reality, and revealing Trump's malicious intentions.

Behind the language of reconstruction and development that seemed to be presented to the Palestinians lie more dangerous provisions. The American plan did not recognize Palestinian sovereignty and did not speak of a two-state solution but imposed strict security conditions: disarming factions before any discussions about self-determination, recognizing the Palestinian state, or even relief and reconstruction. While promises to reconstruct Gaza were made, bulldozers were clearing paths for settlements in the West Bank, showcasing the contradiction between words and actions.

The most dangerous aspect of the scene is what is known as the "Riviera of Gaza," a massive tourism project being proposed in the name of reconstruction, but essentially an attempt to transform parts of the enclave into investment zones almost devoid of inhabitants, managed by foreign companies, while tightening the noose on the residents of Gaza and pushing them to emigrate or accept marginal roles in a sovereignty-less economy—reconstruction without humanity and development without dignity, seizing Gaza's gas and planning the "Ben Gurion" route as an alternative to the Suez Canal.

In light of this reality, the Palestinian leadership has no choice but to operate seriously on the international stage, opening up to major powers and pressing through the United Nations and the International Criminal Court to impose a binding framework for any real peace process based on the borders of 1967 and international legitimacy resolutions. This is the only way to preserve Palestinian rights, as peace that is sold without rights, sovereignty, and commitment to international law is not peace but a political ruse aimed at perpetuating occupation and beautifying its face before the world.

What emerged from the Sharm El-Sheikh summit is nothing but a polite, fragile discourse in substance and illusioned by promises that grants participating parties elegant diplomatic cover for their impotence and silence in the face of genocide, offering no rights or protections to the Palestinians, leaving them suspended between promise and reality, disarming them and killing their resistance. This deal is not peace but a theatrical display to beautify the face of occupation and continue hegemony through force and money. The truth awaits real action on the ground, not glittering speeches or ornate statements—action that restores dignity, preserves rights, and proves that peace cannot be sold with illusions nor covered with beautiful words.