Tony Blair and Donald Trump

Donald Trump has unveiled a new plan for ending the war in Gaza – and former UK prime minister Tony Blair is lined up to play a key part.

While the US president claims his idea could bring “eternal peace in the Middle East” and the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu backs the proposal, Hamas is still ruminating over it.

However, if the Palestinian militants do not agree, Trump has claimed that the Israelis would have “our full backing to do what you would have to do” – and take its attacks on Gaza even further.

So what’s in the deal – and why is Blair involved?

What is the new plan?

The 20-point proposal is essentially a set of “principles” laying out the foundations for further negotiations.

It calls for a stop to the fighting and a restricted withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Hamas would also have to release all remaining hostages, and hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel would be freed.

A local technocratic administration would run the day-to-day services of Gaza, and it would be overseen by a Trump-chaired ‘Board of Peace’ based in Egypt – which Blair would be part of.

The US and Arab countries would set up a “stabilisation” force to take over security and ensure the demilitarise Palestinian armed factions.

Any Hamas members who “commit to peaceful co-existence” and decommission their weapons would be granted amnesty – or face exile.

No one else will be forced to leave Gaza.

Palestinian statehood gets a brief mention, but there’s no commitment to the idea and the plan says it may only be possible if the governing body in the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority, is reformed.

The plan also said “Israel will not occupy or annex Gaza”, but no such promise is made for the West Bank which remains occupied.

The scheme aligns with Israel’s plans........

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