Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered surprising praise for President Donald Trump’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war while appearing in New York City earlier this week.
The unexpected show of support came as Clinton spoke with The New Yorker’s David Remnick at 92NY on Monday, during a conversation in which the former Democratic presidential candidate touched on topics ranging from the Israel-Iran conflict to former President Joe Biden’s decision to run for re-election.
Remnick then turned the conversation to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas and pressed Clinton on her longtime support of a two-state solution in the region.
“But if I look at the Israeli polity, they don’t want a two-state solution, certainly not now. And if you look at the Palestinian polity, which is an even more complicated set of geographies and population, a two-state solution is not anywhere near the offing there,” Remnick said.
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He went on to ask Clinton if the concept of a two-state solution is still viable within the region, as officials push for peace.
“So other than some constituents — now it’s diminishing — in the West and elsewhere, a two-state solution, which was fought for so hard but began going out the window many years ago, seems impossible,” Remnick added. “Am I wrong?”
“You might be, but you might not be,” Clinton said. “And here’s why. I’m going to say something positive about Trump — so hold on.”
“Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza is actually a pathway to security for Israel, reconstruction for Gaza, and the possibility of self-determination — however defined — for the Palestinians,” Clinton continued. “There are a lot of people who reject it because Trump did it, but it’s the only game in town. There’s nothing else.”
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Clinton said that if officials take Trump’s 20-point peace plan and implement it in its entirety, it may provide a feasible solution to end the war overseas.
“But I really believe if we took this 20-point plan, which starts with the disarmament of Hamas — a huge, important step yet to be accomplished — but took all of the 20 points so that it wasn’t just disarm Hamas, and maybe do some reconstruction and build some hotels, resorts on the coast,” Clinton said.
“But if you really took the whole approach that is embodied in that 20-point plan — and I know there are people who are working to try to move forward on that — there is a glimmer of a possible path forward.”
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Trump’s 20-point plan was introduced late last year, and includes granting Hamas terrorists who give up their weapons in favor of peace “amnesty,” establishing Gaza as a “deradicalized terror-free zone” and redeveloping the area commercially.
“If both sides agree to this proposal, the war will immediately end. Israeli forces will withdraw to the agreed-upon line to prepare for a hostage release. During this time, all military operations, including aerial and artillery bombardment, will be suspended, and battle lines will remain frozen until conditions are met for the complete staged withdrawal,” the document reads.
In January, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff announced that the second phase of the plan was underway, while describing the efforts as transitioning the region “from ceasefire to demilitarization, technocratic governance and reconstruction.”
The administration also implemented a Board of Peace, chaired by Trump, with a goal of “providing strategic oversight, mobilizing international resources, and ensuring accountability as Gaza transitions from conflict to peace and development,” according to a previous statement from the White House.
