United States • August 01, 2026 • EPM Editorial Desk • 🌿 Progressive

Hundreds of Palestinian deaths shadow Trump's Gaza 'breakthrough'

Former Palestinian negotiator Diana Buttu told NPR that hundreds of Palestinians have died even during the declared ceasefire, as Trump celebrated a 'historic…

Hundreds of Palestinians have died even during periods described as a ceasefire, former peace negotiator Diana Buttu told NPR — a fact that arrived alongside President Trump's announcement of a "historic breakthrough" in Gaza peace talks, covered by NPR correspondent Frank Langfitt from Tel Aviv. For those on the ground, the announcement landed with familiar objections attached: neither side agrees on who moves first. 🔹 What happened: Trump's plan requires Hamas to fully disarm before Israeli forces begin withdrawing from parts of Gaza. Hamas rejected that sequence immediately, with an official telling NPR that Israel must pull out first before any weapons are handed over. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called the agreement unacceptable from the opposite direction, arguing Israel must keep targeting Hamas fighters to prevent the group from rebuilding capacity, as it did ahead of the October 7, 2023 attack. 🔹 Why it matters: Buttu, who spoke directly to NPR, said she does not expect the deal to succeed and argued that a president genuinely committed to peace would have applied pressure on Israel to stop the attacks causing Palestinian casualties during the nominal ceasefire. "I think if he were truly interested in this peace plan, as he put it, then he would have made sure that Israel was stopped," Buttu said. Negotiator Gershon Baskin, who has worked with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, holds a different view: he told NPR that Hamas is in the weakest position he has ever witnessed — unable to govern or rule — and that Trump's desire to secure a legacy could push him toward real pressure. Trump's team has tied Gaza reconstruction to Hamas compliance with a roadmap. 📌 EPM Take: Buttu's point deserves more than a single soundbite: she is not describing a future risk. She is describing deaths already counted, during a ceasefire already declared. That is the factual ground on which this "breakthrough" stands. Trump's plan makes Gaza reconstruction conditional on Hamas — a lever applied to the weaker party. There is no equivalent visible mechanism conditioning U.S. military support to Israel on Israeli compliance. Baskin acknowledges Hamas has no leverage. But asymmetric pressure applied only downward has a track record in this conflict, and it is not a track record of durable outcomes. The question that does not appear in any official statement: what happens to ordinary Gazans if Hamas complies and reconstruction still does not materialize?

President Trump put total Hamas disarmament at the center of his Gaza peace framework, a position grounded in a straightforward security rationale: no lasting agreement is possible while Hamas retains military capacity, according to NPR's coverage by correspondent Frank Langfitt in Tel Aviv. Hamas's resistance to that condition — and the terms it offered instead — tells its own story about where the group actually stands. 🔹 What happened: Trump's framework requires Hamas to surrender all weapons first; only then would Israeli forces begin pulling back from areas of Gaza. Hamas flipped the sequence, telling NPR through an official that Israel must withdraw before any disarmament occurs — a condition that would remove security guarantees from the process. Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir rejected the plan on different grounds, arguing that Israel must retain the ability to strike Hamas fighters to prevent the group from reconstituting, as it did before the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel. 🔹 Why it matters: Negotiator Gershon Baskin, who has worked directly with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, provided the most strategically relevant assessment: Hamas is in the weakest position he has ever seen. "They have no leverage. They're finished. They have no power anymore. They know that they cannot govern, they cannot rule," Baskin told NPR. Trump's "Board of Peace" has explicitly tied Gaza reconstruction to Hamas following a roadmap — adding economic pressure to the military dimension. The U.S. remains Israel's largest military backer, giving Washington real leverage over both parties if Trump chooses to use it. 📌 EPM Take: Here is what the simultaneous rejection by Hamas and Ben-Gvir actually reveals: they are not blocking the same thing. Hamas is resisting disarmament — the core security demand. Ben-Gvir is resisting the political cost of accepting a framework that limits Israel's operational freedom. Those are different problems requiring different tools. Baskin's judgment that Hamas has no leverage is the most actionable piece of analysis in this story, and it points toward a real opening — but only if the Netanyahu coalition can hold a position that Ben-Gvir currently opposes from inside the cabinet. EPM has noted that Gaza peace announcements tend to precede party confirmation. The variable that will determine whether this plan is different is not Hamas's weakness. It is whether Washington applies the same pressure eastward as it does downward.

Civiles palestinos pagan el costo del 'avance' de Trump en Gaza

La ex negociadora Diana Buttu advirtió que cientos de palestinos han muerto incluso durante el alto al fuego declarado, mientras Trump celebra un 'avance…

Cientos de palestinos han muerto incluso durante períodos descritos como alto el fuego, mientras el presidente Trump presentó su plan de paz para Gaza como un "avance histórico", según informó NPR con cobertura de Frank Langfitt desde Tel Aviv. Para quienes viven en la zona, el anuncio llegó acompañado de las mismas objeciones de siempre: Israel no quiere retirarse primero y Hamas no quiere desarmar primero. 🔹 Lo que pasó: El plan de Trump establece que Hamas se desarmaría completamente y, solo entonces, las fuerzas israelíes comenzarían a retirarse de sectores de Gaza. Hamas respondió en horas: un funcionario del grupo declaró a NPR que Israel debe retirarse antes de que Hamas entregue sus armas. El ministro israelí de Seguridad Nacional, Itamar Ben-Gvir, fue más directo: calificó el acuerdo de inaceptable porque impediría a Israel seguir atacando a combatientes de Hamas, lo que a su juicio permitiría al grupo reorganizarse tal como lo hizo antes del 7 de octubre de 2023. 🔹 Por qué importa: Diana Buttu, ex negociadora palestina de paz, dijo a NPR que no espera que el trato funcione. Buttu señaló que si Trump estuviera genuinamente comprometido con este plan de paz, habría presionado a Israel para detener los ataques que han causado cientos de muertes palestinas, incluso durante lo que se anuncia como un cese al fuego. "Creo que si realmente estuviera interesado en este plan de paz, se habría asegurado de que Israel fuera detenido", declaró Buttu directamente a NPR. Gershon Baskin, negociador que ha trabajado con el enviado especial Steve Witkoff, tiene una lectura distinta: considera que Hamas está en su posición más débil, sin capacidad de gobernar ni dirigir, y que eso abre una oportunidad real si Trump aplica presión suficiente. 📌 Conclusión EPM: El detalle que los titulares minimizan es la afirmación de Buttu sobre las muertes palestinas durante el propio período de cese al fuego. Si eso es verificable —y NPR lo atribuye directamente a una ex negociadora con experiencia de primera línea— entonces el marco de "avance histórico" entra en tensión directa con la realidad sobre el terreno. El plan de Trump condiciona la reconstrucción de Gaza al cumplimiento de Hamas, pero no hay un mecanismo visible que condicione el apoyo militar estadounidense a Israel al cumplimiento israelí. Esa asimetría es lo que Buttu nombra y lo que el anuncio omite. La pregunta que nadie en el escenario oficial formula: ¿qué obligación concreta asume la parte más poderosa de la ecuación?

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