The first and most important conclusion from Blair being dropped is improvisation and haste policies, as if the Gaza Strip is a field of experiments in which formulas, initiatives and even players change from day to day. FILE PHOTO: AFP
For months, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair's role has been lobbying US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to head a "temporary transitional authority in Gaza." The former UK PM's intense interest in taking the leadership role of a "governor of Gaza" was a red flag from the start. The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) drew up a plan behind the scenes with Jared Kushner, who publicly stated that Gaza's "waterfront property could be very valuable." Tony Blair amassed an empire of wealth unlike any other former UK PM since leaving office, through an overlapping web of charities, advisory positions, firms, and foundations, and thus became one of the wealthiest people in the UK.
Many Western political leaders have had shady careers, but Blair has proven to be a self-serving opportunist who injects himself wherever there is a shot to become relevant in the global political scene. His involvement in the "Gaza peace plan" was in the least interest of the Palestinian people, who are being killed mercilessly in the Gaza Strip. Blair's plan revealed a hierarchy in which an international board of billionaires and businesspeople sit at the top, a long-known tactic of his to mix private enrichment with so-called "public service" for the Palestinians. Blair sees business opportunities beneath the rubble of Gaza.
In the many periods in which he held the positions of power, Blair turned British politics into a follower of US imperialist politics to serve his own interests and position himself as a loyal lobbyist for US foreign policies. Even as PM, Blair unwaveringly supported George W Bush's plan to invade Iraq. It is even documented that Blair wrote a private note to Bush in 2002, saying, "I will be with you, whatever." The chair of Blair's own intelligence committee at the time had questioned the evidence of "weapons of mass destruction" in Iraq. However, Blair admitted that he wanted to ensure he was the US's first partner of choice. He subordinated his own government to the goals of the Bush administration. Prominent British politicians such as Jeremy Corbyn had long accused Blair of war crimes. Tony Blair's involvement must be blocked immediately because his history of corruption and failure poses a risk to the Trump administration's political timeline as it tries to manage the crisis in Gaza for its own benefit.
Right after he left office as PM, Blair's impulses behind the US invasion of Iraq led to his appointment as representative of the Quartet to salvage the peace process between Israel and Palestine, which had begun to show signs of dying and had reached the brink of inevitable collapse. The Quartet committee consisted of the US, Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations.
During his job as Middle East envoy, Blair lobbied for the development of an oil field off the Gaza Strip, which would be owned and operated by British Gas. He proposed economic policies that would benefit JP Morgan, where Blair was also serving as an adviser, and drew a salary of two million pounds per year. He intrepidly used his position to make financial gains for himself, his initiatives and those of his family's as well. In 2010, Blair used his access to Middle Eastern people of power to help his wife, Cherie Blair, raise funds for her charitable initiatives worldwide, including in Bangladesh, showing further conflict of interest.
When Israel launched a brutal war against Palestinians in Gaza in 2009, Blair, the Middle East envoy to negotiate peace for "Palestinian statehood", was silent and was said to be on holiday. It was later revealed that he was, at the time, meeting the Israeli defence minister. All that Blair did, unsurprisingly, benefited Israel's interests. While Gaza was in rubble, he received $1 million from Tel Aviv University for his "exceptional leadership." Later in 2011, Blair created a proposal, which championed dropping Palestinians' calls for an end to illegal occupation and instead demanded that Palestinians recognise Israel as a "Jewish state." Two years later, Blair hired Netanyahu's former aide as his own private consultant, ruining his credibility that he could undertake any neutral position in the peace process. Blair's career in the Middle East went hand-in-hand with US-Israeli policies, demonstrating a fusion of his business dealings and diplomatic dealings to profit off the backs of Palestinians.
Blair's history made many in the Middle East reserved about the US administration's choice of him as a front for their effort regarding Gaza, which finally led to his recent removal from the main executive position. The first and most important conclusion from Blair being dropped is improvisation and haste policies, as if the Gaza Strip is a field of experiments in which formulas, initiatives and even players change from day to day. Improvisation and haste positioned Blair as the CEO of the most important political project on the basis of which the future of the Middle East will be determined. The lack of sufficient consultation with those concerned, such as the partners of the US administration's project, is reflected in what happened to Blair being dropped as a major figure from the "peace council" before he began his work in Gaza. Blair's supposed appointment and quiet dismissal point to a fragile and bleak plan of field testing politics in Gaza, the result of which can lead to further uncertainty about what will happen to the region, and most importantly, the self-determination of Palestinians.
Yousef SY Ramadan is the ambassador of Palestine to Bangladesh.
Views expressed in this article are the author's own.
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