While Joe Biden claims it was ongoing work by him and his team that brought about the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement announced on Wednesday, Jan. 15, it was plainly the result of President-elect Donald Trump’s efforts to achieve an agreement—in large part to free him up to pursue his own priorities. Palestinians, relieved if not jubilant, Israeli extremists, shocked and furious, and families of the hostages, hopeful of seeing their loved ones, have responded to the news in their own way. Clearly, the Biden administration—or whatever or whoever has been running U.S. executive policy—could have forced the deal months ago, but it chose to allow the ongoing destruction of Gaza while paying lip service to the aspirations of the Palestinians.
That was the point made by two journalists at the last press conference of the outgoing Secretary of State. Max Blumenthal and Sam Husseini’s sharp questions to Blinken—"Why aren’t you in The Hague?” and “Why did you allow the Holocaust of our time to happen?"—were met with force, as they were escorted out, and, in one case, handcuffed.
Will Trump, who threatened that “hell” could break out in the region if a deal were not reached, have similar potential success in other areas of the world? And will the full scope of development required to defeat the desert sands through water projects and, over time, to take hate out of the hearts, be carried out?
While the incoming President has touted his relationship with President of China Xi Jinping, his sharp comments and choices for key cabinet positions do not inspire confidence that he will achieve meaningful cooperation with the world’s largest economy, instead of conflict, whether in the military realm, trade, or both.
In all these matters, the choice lies not in Trump, but in ourselves.
What demands do the people of the world make of their governments? Will dialogue draw in people of good will from the Global North and the Global South, to share experiences and realize a truly human future for everyone? Consider the phenomenon of TikTok. While a U.S. law is set to end the social media platform—whose parent company has refused to be forced to divest—another app from China, Xiaohongshu, has become the most downloaded mobile app, and numerous testimonials show Americans learning more about how people in China and other parts of the world live.
With a commitment to advancing the common ends of our shared humanity—to scientific, technological, economic, cultural, and moral growth—we can forge not only an international, but an interplanetary future.
“Ceasefire Reached in Gaza,” begins the title of today’s meeting of the International Peace Coalition. “Now It’s Time To End the Genocide of Geopolitics.”
