In a recent speech online, David Hearst, a notable commentator and Editor-in-Chief for The Middle East Eye, expressed grave concerns over President Trump’s policies towards Gaza and the broader Middle East, highlighting what he perceives as a dangerous shift towards ethnic cleansing in Gaza and regional destabilization.
Hearst began his critique by quoting Donald Trump’s description of Gaza: ”Gaza is a hellhole right now,” and further emphasized the dire conditions by stating, ”It’s all death in Gaza, nothing but death and destruction.” He pointed out the stark hypocrisy of discussing such devastation while sitting next to those he accuses of war crimes, referencing an ICC arrest warrant.
The core of Hearst’s alarm was Trump’s apparent plan for a mass transfer of Palestinians from Gaza. He quoted Trump saying, ”I think they’ll be resettled,” suggesting a plan to move 1.8 million out of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, raising the chilling question, ”What happens to the rest? Are they all killed?” Hearst labelled this plan as ”ethnic cleansing by presidential decree,” with Trump envisioning transforming Gaza into a ”Riviera of the nation.”
EXPOSED: Trump & Netanyahu’s Plan for Greater Israel @davidahearst pic.twitter.com/rH3jdwf6gE
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Hearst connected this policy to Trump’s close advisors, notably Jared Kushner, who has previously commented on Gaza’s potential real estate value. He accused Trump of being ”bankrolled by Zionist billionaires” and filling his cabinet with pro-Israel advocates, including Mike Huckabee, who denies the existence of Palestinians, and Pete Hegseth, who supports rebuilding the third temple on the site of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The speech also touched on the political implications of these policies, criticizing Trump’s apparent use of hostage families as ”stage props” for his inauguration while simultaneously green-lighting further conflict. Hearst questioned the sincerity of Trump’s ceasefire gesture, arguing, ”You can’t have a continuing hostage release and war and greater Israel at the same time.”
Moreover, Hearst warned about the broader regional impact, suggesting that Trump’s policies could lead to ”Californian-style wildfires” across the Middle East, potentially igniting conflicts with Israel’s neighbours like Egypt and Jordan. He quoted senior Jordanian sources indicating that a forced population transfer would be a ”cause for war,” highlighting the existential threat such policies pose.
He criticized the international community for its passivity, noting, ”The entire Western media has concentrated on the release of the hostages that Hamas released in good condition” while ignoring the plight of Palestinian prisoners. He pointed out the ongoing arrests in the West Bank and the systematic undermining of the Palestinian Authority (PA), which he sees as a deliberate strategy by Israel to prevent Palestinian statehood.
David Hearst concluded with a dire warning about the sustainability of Israel’s current policies, stating, ”Israel is only prevailing by literally levelling all the neighbourhoods around it.” He predicted that such actions would not lead to peace but rather to a ”recipe for a regional war,” with the Palestinian cause gaining renewed vigour across the Arab world.
Source: Double Down News, February 10, 2025