There has been growing outrage amid reports that former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of the architects of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, could lead a new administration in post-war Gaza.
Pro-Palestinian activists and political commentators took to social media to criticise the potential move that could see the former UK leader manage the war-devastated Gaza Strip for the coming years, if and when Israel’s military onslaught ends.
Activists pointed to the colonial undertones of the plan - reminiscent of the UK and French-mandated territories in the Middle East in the 20th century, as well as Blair’s role in the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, which resulted in tens or hundreds of thousands of deaths.
"War criminals are proposing a war criminal a head (sic) of… Gaza. It would be precious comedy if it were not so tragic," former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis wrote on Friday.
Historian William Dalrymple said sarcastically: "Given Blair’s superb record in the Middle East, what could possibly go wrong?"
In a post on X, Palestinian activist Nour Odeh warned that Blair "being recycled and repackaged to be part of the post-genocide picture in Gaza speaks volumes about what is at play", in reference to a series of Western-led "post-war plans for Gaza" which have so far failed to significantly involve Palestinians and have triggered concerns over their future in their homeland.
If approved, Blair is expected to head a supervisory board called the Gaza International Transitional Authority (GITA), which would serve as the "supreme political and legal authority" of the territory, which could last up to five years in power.
The plan will not include President Mahmoud Abbas’s Palestinian Authority in its initial years, but will instead see Gaza run militarily by a UN-endorsed Arab multinational force, before being handed back to Palestinian governance.
The transitional authority will reportedly consist of 25 members and a seven-person-board – with only one Palestinian figure involved, reports have indicated.
According to Israeli media, the authority would at first be based in Al-Arish, a city in Egypt’s North Sinai governorate, located 45 kilometres west of the country’s border with Gaza.
The US reportedly backs the proposal, which envisions "the eventual unifying of all the Palestinian territory under the PA".
The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) said it would not support a plan that would forcibly displace the Strip’s Palestinians, as previously feared over the months.
The New Arab has reached out to the institute for comment.
In August, Blair took part in a meeting headed by US President Donald Trump over Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and post-war plans, which US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff described as "very comprehensive".
In the previous month, a Financial Times report revealed that the TBI was involving itself in Trump’s controversial reconstruction idea for the enclave – dubbed the "Gaza Riviera" – a plan which would see the forced displacement of Palestinians from the Strip to make way for Trump-linked real estate.
The proposal prompted widespread outrage globally because of its advocacy of ethnic cleansing.
Blair’s Middle East controversies, pro-Israeli connections
A Blair-headed board overseeing Gaza is likely to be received badly by Palestinians, given his poor history with the Middle East.
Blair, who served as UK prime minister between 1997 and 2007, was a key player in the 2003 invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq, which the British army took a major part in.
The US-led invasion drew worldwide protests at the time, while an inquiry into the war found that Blair acted on flawed intelligence concerning the presence of weapons of mass destruction in the country.
Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians were killed during the invasion and occupation, and Blair and then-US President George W. Bush were labelled as war criminals by anti-war activists for their actions.
After leaving office, Blair served as an envoy of the Middle East Quartet – a group of countries and international organisations involved in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
Blair was heavily criticised by Palestinians during this time for a perceived bias towards Israel, upholding Israel’s occupation and settlement policy and for failing to accomplish anything related to Palestinian statehood.
His term as envoy ended in 2015 with the peace process stalled.
Blair's Institute has received funding from pro-Israeli US businessman Larry Ellison, while his think tank has been linked to the UAE – which normalised relations with Israel in 2020 and went on to sign multiple agreements with the country, amid Palestinian outrage.
Accoring to some reports, Blair is also listed as an honorary patron of the UK branch of the Jewish National Fund charity, which donates to Israel and allegedly its military.
Israel, PA want Hamas out of Gaza
Throughout the war, Israel has vowed to "destroy" Hamas and prohibit it from having any role in the governance of the territory. The Palestinian Authority, via its leader Mahmoud Abbas, has also called for Hamas to abandon its rule of Gaza – most recently at the UN General Assembly on Thursday.
Israel, however, also rejects any PA involvement in Gaza.
Hamas has indicated its willingness to rescind its power in Gaza but has repeatedly rejected calls by Israel, the US and the PA to lay down its weapons.
Instead, the Palestinian group has insisted that the PA abandons its security coordination with Israel and focus on the reconciliation of all factions, for the sake of an independent Palestinian state.
The UN voted last week to support a Hamas-free governance for Gaza, in an endorsement of the New York declaration - a statement calling for a two-state solution which was prepared by France and Saudi Arabia in July.
As part of preparations for post-war Gaza, Egypt – a key mediator between Hamas and Israel – said this week it was open to deploying an international force in Gaza under a UN Security Council mandate, to help the Palestinian Authority administer the enclave.