Pathway to peace

Without restoring Israeli and Palestinians' shattered sense of security, this plan will be short-lived

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For now, the nightmare in Gaza has stopped — but this isn't the moment to dream.

If there is to be a road from ceasefire to peace for Israelis and Palestinians, the only way to progress along it will be with eyes wide open, in small, deliberate and purposeful steps. Even setting out what those steps might be is a wake-up call to the difficulties ahead.

Step one: security. Israel's sense of security was shattered on 7 October 2023; Palestinians have been progressively robbed of theirs by death, deprivation and famine. Without confidence on both sides that lives are secure, it's not just that the process which began last week won't arrive at a peaceful destination, it's worse than that: there won't even be a second step. As Donald Trump's plan envisages, Hamas has to agree to a verifiable, phased disarmament, and Israel must reopen the Rafah crossing and allow all the food, medicine and supplies that Gaza needs to flood in, unfettered.