Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looked like the cat that swallowed the canary as he listened to President Donald Trump lay out his vision for Gaza’s future.

The plan would push the 1.9 million Gazans out of their homes. It would resettle them in Jordan, or Egypt or some other place, wherever they might be taken in. It would involve sending in American troops to help stabilize the Strip and would place Gaza under American control. It would clear all the buildings that were destroyed in Israel’s war with Hamas and level those that are still standing. It would redevelop Gaza into a world-class resort.

All of this was music to Netanyahu’s ears, and even more so to the extremist and racist right-wingers whose support keeps the prime minister’s government in power. Yet to paraphrase the great German strategist Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke the Elder’s observation about war, “No plan survives contact with reality.”

To begin with, removing Gaza’s nearly 2 million residents would be a massive undertaking. Most, if not all, would likely resist. In any event, no country is likely willing to take in any more Palestinians than those who already reside within its borders.

Jordan and Egypt, the two nations that Trump has mentioned most often as the best locales for resettling Palestinians, have already indicated their refusal to absorb any refugees. Palestinians already constitute a major percentage of Jordan’s........

© The Hill