Speaker 1: Cool Zone Media. Hello everyone, and welcome to it could
Speaker 1: happen here. My name is Dan Alperd. I'm a professor
Speaker 1: of political science and a researcher of Arab and Palestinian politics.
Speaker 1: Since I last recorded an episode, those in power have
Speaker 1: been very busy. The world looks different from a month ago.
Speaker 1: What would the assault on Minneapolis, the kidnapping of Venezuelan
Speaker 1: President Maduro, the as of this recording, possible invasion of Greenland.
Speaker 1: It's been hard for even the best of us to
Speaker 1: keep up. As Znemic from the series and Or would say,
Speaker 1: the pace of repression outstrips our ability to understand it.
Speaker 1: And that is the real trick of the imperial thought machine.
Speaker 1: It's easier to hide behind forty atrocities than a single incident.
Speaker 1: I will never not squeeze in an and Or reference
Speaker 1: when I can, given that this is the state of
Speaker 1: the world. What's happening in Shalstein has largely slipped out
Speaker 1: of most people's speeds and certainly the media headlines. But
Speaker 1: lots is happening, Lots of dangerous things are happening, and
Speaker 1: I'm going to take this episode to give an update
Speaker 1: of about what's been going on. Since the ceasefire was
Speaker 1: announced three months ago, four hundred and forty nine Palestinians
Speaker 1: have been killed by Israeli attacks and another one thousand,
Speaker 1: two hundred and forty six have been injured. Over one
Speaker 1: hundred of those killed were children. According to UNISEF, the
Speaker 1: Gaza Strip has been reduced even further with a new
Speaker 1: quote yellow line demarketing where Israeli troops will remain and
Speaker 1: where Palestinians are not allowed to go. They literally placed
Speaker 1: concrete yellow blocks on the ground in Gaza, and as
Speaker 1: the BBC notes from a report January sixteenth of this year,
Speaker 1: Israel continues to push the yellow line further and further
Speaker 1: into what remains of Gaza. The United Nations Office for
Speaker 1: the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs notes, quote the israel Early
Speaker 1: military remains deployed in over fifty percent of the Gaza
Speaker 1: Strip beyond the yellow line, where access to humanitarian facilities
Speaker 1: and assets, public infrastructure, and agricultural land are either restricted
Speaker 1: or prohibited. In this context, and despite this context, the
Speaker 1: Trump administration has declared that Phares one of the Cispar
Speaker 1: agreement is now over and that fes tow will commits.
Speaker 2: The US has announced the launch of the second phase
Speaker 2: of the Gaza ceasefire Agreement. Special ENVOYE. Steve Whitcoff shared
Speaker 2: the news in a social media post, writing that Phase
Speaker 2: two establishes a transitional, technocratic Palestinian administration in Gaza, the
Speaker 2: National Committee for the Administration of Gaza. He also wrote
Speaker 2: that it begins the full demilitarization and reconstruction of Gaza,
Speaker 2: primarily the disarmament of all unauthorized personnel. Whitcoff says the
Speaker 2: US expects Hamas to comply fully with its obligations, including
Speaker 2: the immediate return of the final deceased hostage, and warns
Speaker 2: that the failure to do so will bring serious consequences.
Speaker 1: Now, this is the declaration, even though really, aside from
Speaker 1: the return of Israeli hostages, no part of the twenty
Speaker 1: point plan that the Trump administration put forward as the
Speaker 1: quote peace Plan was realized. On the ground, eight is
Speaker 1: being let in, but not at the levels that it's needed.
Speaker 1: Attacks against Palestinians haven't stopped. Nonetheless, Phase two is apparently
Speaker 1: starting with the naming of members of the Board of Peace. Now,
Speaker 1: if listeners will recall from a previous episode, Trump declared
Speaker 1: himself the chair of this Board of Peace that's supposed
Speaker 1: to bring peace to the Middle East, and Tony Blair
Speaker 1: was tapped to run it, much to the outrage of
Speaker 1: anyone who witnessed Blair's cooperation and the destruction of Iraq.
Speaker 1: Now this Board of Piece is going to run the
Speaker 1: Gaza strip and its quote unquote technocratic government, and it's
Speaker 1: going to make sure how Masty militarizes and that Palestinians
Speaker 1: don't step out of line. The Board of Peace is
Speaker 1: one aspect of the Great Plan, Great Standing for Gaza Reconstitution,
Speaker 1: Economic Acceleration and Transformation Plan, a plan that apparently will
Speaker 1: turn Gaza into the Riviera of the Middle East. The
Speaker 1: Huffington Post reported January seventeenth that Trump is setting a
Speaker 1: billion dollar price tag for any country that wants to
Speaker 1: participate on this board. Members so far include Tony Blair,
Speaker 1: Secretary of State Marco Rubio, son in law Jared Kushner,
Speaker 1: US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, Mark Rowan,
Speaker 1: the CEO of Apollo Global Management, Israeli billionaire Yakir Gabey,
Speaker 1: and a number of others along the same vein. Among
Speaker 1: those Trump has invited include Vladimir Putin, famously very interested
Speaker 1: in peace and not at all in eradicating Ukrainian existence.
Speaker 1: Trump also sent a letter to Victor Orban, far right
Speaker 1: wing president of Hungary, to join the Board of Peace.
Speaker 1: Orbon has apparently accepted this invitation. To remind listeners, Orbon
Speaker 1: is one of Trump's models for authoritary takeover of democratic institutions.
Speaker 1: Orbon is also very close ties with Prime Minister Nitaniehu
Speaker 1: in Israel, despite his anti Semitic politics. Now, I thought
Speaker 1: the letter he sent to Orbon and to every other
Speaker 1: right wing politician he's been inviting was quite telling. In
Speaker 1: the letter, Trump invites Orbon to join, presumably with the
Speaker 1: billion dollar pay to play, and calls the Board of
Speaker 1: Peace a quote bold new approach to resolving global conflict.
Speaker 1: Reuter Is reporting on this issue, quoted an anonymous diplomat
Speaker 1: saying it's a Trump United Nations that ignores the fundamentals
Speaker 1: of the UN Charter. In fact, the charter of the
Speaker 1: Board of Peace doesn't even mention Gaza. So what is
Speaker 1: this bold new approach to resolving global conflict? It's apparently
Speaker 1: a resolution to conflict that includes a neocolonial oversight board
Speaker 1: run by white men to make sure the natives don't
Speaker 1: get too excited. Now, this oversight board is intended to
Speaker 1: manage conflict, because let's be clear, this isn't about solving
Speaker 1: conflict at the expense of the people who have been
Speaker 1: facing the brunt of this conflict. So we should take
Speaker 1: them at their word that this is going to be
Speaker 1: the way that global conflict is going to be resolved
Speaker 1: from now on. This is the blueprint. Gaza is only
Speaker 1: the test case, and in this new form of authoritarian
Speaker 1: conflict management, the world will operate without any pretensions under
Speaker 1: the premise of might is right, and if the Gaza Reconstitution,
Speaker 1: Economic Acceleration and Transformation Plan is any indication, this plan
Speaker 1: is predicated on encouraging Palestinians to ultimately leave Gaza, at
Speaker 1: least some significant segment of them. So not only might
Speaker 1: is right, but ethnic cleansing is a more than fine
Speaker 1: way to resolve a dispute. And finally, the plan is
Speaker 1: dedicated on the idea that reconstruction is a business opportunity.
Speaker 1: So to review, Mike is right, ethnic cleansing is AOK,
Speaker 1: and war is a prime real estate development opportunity. Now
Speaker 1: things get even worse when we bring in the guy
Speaker 1: who's been tapped to be the director general of this board.
Speaker 1: Nikolai Maladanov is a Bulgarian politician, an x UN envoy
Speaker 1: who has been tasked with quote disarming Gaza. According to
Speaker 1: a report by Al Jazira published January fifteenth, he's the
Speaker 1: guy who's going to oversee the National Committee for the
Speaker 1: Administration of Gaza, the technocratic government which is run by
Speaker 1: a Palstinian bureaucrats, and make sure that they stay in
Speaker 1: line during the reconstruction phase. Somehow, these bureaucrats are supposed
Speaker 1: to reconstruct Gaza while not being able to operate in
Speaker 1: most of it. Anyway, Maladanov, this guy is really something.
Speaker 1: He's a Bulgarian diplomat that worked as a minister for
Speaker 1: one of the most corrupt governments in Bulgaria, a government
Speaker 1: that faced mass protest pretty persistently. He is part of
Speaker 1: a right wing populist party in Bulgaria. His father was
Speaker 1: also involved in politics, specifically in the Bulgarian Virgin of
Speaker 1: the KGIB before the transition from the communist regime. Since
Speaker 1: twenty twenty one, he's been working in an Amarati institution,
Speaker 1: the Unwar Gagaesh Diplomatic Academy, where he came out as
Speaker 1: a quote vocal proponent of the Abrahamic courts, the normalization
Speaker 1: agreements between Israel and several Arab states. Now it all
Speaker 1: checks out, honestly that this is the guy who's going
Speaker 1: to be the director General. The fact that this person
Speaker 1: is the one being chosen for face two of the ceasefire,
Speaker 1: and the fact that he has this kind of political
Speaker 1: background should make clear that the plan for Gaza isn't
Speaker 1: just a blueprint for the world new levels of authoritarian
Speaker 1: conflict management with no pretense, but also a part and
Speaker 1: parcel of the US Israeli Imarati vis for the region. Now,
Speaker 1: this vision is one where Arab authoritarian regimes and Israel,
Speaker 1: with the US supporting, remake the Middle East into a
Speaker 1: quote modern, developed, tolerant Middle East, essentially by pouring concrete
Speaker 1: over graves and building megacities on top of rubble. Their
Speaker 1: vision of the Middle East is one that is authoritarian
Speaker 1: and contained. More citizens are subjects. These subjects can have
Speaker 1: some social freedoms and maybe some economic opportunities, but should
Speaker 1: never think that they can have an opinion on anything
Speaker 1: that happens to them. This is a vision where states
Speaker 1: like the UAE the United Arab Emirates can arm militias
Speaker 1: to conduct ethnic cleansing in Sudan and Israel can get
Speaker 1: away with ethnic cleansing in Palestine because ethnic cleansing and
Speaker 1: genocide are apparently a perfectly reasonable way of getting rid
Speaker 1: of undesirables. Now, I'm not saying that this isn't how
Speaker 1: these states operated even before the genocide and Gaza, and
Speaker 1: I'm not saying it wasn't how the US allowed certain
Speaker 1: allies to operate even before Trump. Perhaps the writing was
Speaker 1: on the wall when Palestinians were indefinitely occupied and no
Speaker 1: one cared, or when Artzach was ethnically cleansed and Azerbaijan
Speaker 1: got away with it. President Biden gave his blessing to
Speaker 1: the destruction of Gaza after October seventh, after all, but
Speaker 1: there used to be a pretense, a pretense of international
Speaker 1: law and a quote liberal international order. There also used
Speaker 1: to be variation on these issues. This type of authoritarian
Speaker 1: conflict management wasn't always tolerated. In fact, Arab liberals who
Speaker 1: advocated for democracy would often say that the US is
Speaker 1: different from China or Russia in that at least it
Speaker 1: was committed to democracy and international law and human rights. Rhetorically,
Speaker 1: even if there was hypocrisy, they thought that that space
Speaker 1: between reality and rhetoric could be leveraged and exploited. But
Speaker 1: now there is nothing to be leveraged. Authoritarian conflict management
Speaker 1: is the motor oparandee of powerful states, and according to
Speaker 1: Donald Trump's new doctrine, the don Roade Doctrine, each powerful
Speaker 1: state gets to do what it wants in its own
Speaker 1: sphere of influence. In fact, not only is territorial aggression valid,
Speaker 1: it's actually the way the world should work. According to
Speaker 1: all of Trump's spokespeople and parts of his administration, conquest
Speaker 1: is totally fine. Here's Stephen Miller on Greenland, for example.
Speaker 3: Under every understanding of law that has existed about territorial
Speaker 3: control for five hundred years, to control a territory, you
Speaker 3: have to be able to defend a territory, improve a territory,
Speaker 3: inhabit a territory. Denmark has feeled that every single one
Speaker 3: of these tests.
Speaker 1: So Gaza is indeed the blueprint for what happens to
Speaker 1: weaker states in war, or what happens in this case
Speaker 1: to stateless people deemed undesirable and expendable. Now, what are
Speaker 1: the Palestinians saying about all this? The technocratic government made
Speaker 1: up of Pastine bureaucrats, is saying it's committed to a
Speaker 1: reconstruction of Gaza that is rooted in quote, peace, democracy
Speaker 1: and justice. The Palestinian Authority, the largely illegitimate and undemocratic
Speaker 1: governance body that apparently governs the West Bank somehow and
Speaker 1: represents Palestinians. They're putting out statements welcoming the Board of
Speaker 1: Peace and Trump's vision, maybe because they think this will
Speaker 1: earn them a seat at the table, or maybe it's
Speaker 1: a way to sideline their main opposition, Hamas in whatever
Speaker 1: crumbs of Palestine they're allowed to control in the future.
Speaker 1: Hamas has said in a statement that they also welcome
Speaker 1: the formation of the Administrative Committee for the Gaza Strip
Speaker 1: to quote achieve comm in Gaza, while noting that they
Speaker 1: are working with mediators to get to the next stage
Speaker 1: of the ceasefire, and they accuse Zuel of trying to
Speaker 1: break the ceasefire agreement. The Israeli government ironically rejects any
Speaker 1: Palestinian involvement, even at the technocratic level, and have vowed
Speaker 1: to take it up with their friend Trump and the
Speaker 1: Palestinian people. Well, here is Gazen journalist Hintrodare of Al
Speaker 1: Jazir English.
Speaker 2: And what has been the reaction in Gaza to that
Speaker 2: announcement of a move to Phase two.
Speaker 4: Well, just like you said, it an announcement, a symbolic
Speaker 4: announcement to Phase two.
Speaker 5: Palatinians did not see anything on the ground. There's no change.
Speaker 4: And despite all of that, we're still hearing drones as
Speaker 4: you can hear in the background. We also heard a
Speaker 4: couple of explosions since the early hours of the morning,
Speaker 4: where demolishings are still going on across the Gazza strip,
Speaker 4: especially after the yellow line. Palatinians are frustrated, They're very disappointed.
Speaker 5: They thought that Phase two.
Speaker 4: Would give them the freedom of movement, that would give
Speaker 4: them reconstruction of Gaza would also give them a little
Speaker 4: bit of what they lost. But on the ground, nothing happened,
Speaker 4: nothing changed. What we know so far is there are
Speaker 4: fifteen members that have been approved.
Speaker 5: On to be ruling Gaza.
Speaker 4: But there are a lot of questions and concerns this
Speaker 4: is going to happen. What is going to happen to
Speaker 4: the people here? The reconstruction, the rough crossing thousands who
Speaker 4: need to get education and also people who need to
Speaker 4: travel abroad to either get their treatment to get.
Speaker 5: To reunite with their family.
Speaker 4: So there's a lot of questions, but mainly there is
Speaker 4: a lot of frustration because there's nothing changing on the ground.
Speaker 1: People in Gaza are beyond exhaustion. Everyone wants some path
Speaker 1: forward out of this nightmare. But I really don't think,
Speaker 1: for all the reasons I described here today, that this
Speaker 1: is it and we shouldn't let them, the Trumps and
Speaker 1: Orbonds and billionaires of the world, get away with the
Speaker 1: narrative that they're peacemakers and that apparently this is all
Speaker 1: in the name of tolerance and peace. That's it for
Speaker 1: me today. Thank you for listening, and hope you're all
Speaker 1: staying safe.
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Speaker 3: Thanks for listening.