BOARD OF PEACE – Part 2

Part 2 of the Board of Peace analysis dissects the actual structure behind the so-called Gaza “peace plan”:
A four-layer power architecture under Donald Trump’s lifetime control, dominated by real-estate developers, private-equity financiers, and political figureheads.
Based on the official White House primary source, this piece exposes how reconstruction, displacement, investment, and military control are fused into a single system—without Palestinian consent, but with clearly defined beneficiaries.

THE HEIST THEY CALL “PEACE”

by Michael Hollister
Exclusive published at Michael Hollister on February 08, 2026

4.736 words * 25 minutes readingtime

Part 1 of the 3-part series you will be able to find here:
BOARD OF PEACE – Part 1 – THE HEIST THEY CALL “PEACE”

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Part 2: The Structure

IV. THE BUSINESSMEN: WHO PROFITS FROM RECONSTRUCTION?

On January 16, 2026, the White House publishes a statement: “President Trump’s Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict.” The document is available on whitehouse.gov. It’s not a leak. Not a conspiracy theory. Not an interpretation. It’s the official primary source.

The statement presents the “Board of Peace”—a new institution with four levels:

  1. Board of Peace (top level)
  2. Executive Board (7 members)
  3. Gaza Executive Board (11 members)
  4. National Committee for Administration of Gaza / NCAG (Palestinian “technocrats”)

Plus a military component: The International Stabilization Force (ISF) under command of a U.S. general.

Let’s look at who sits there. Not who these people are—that’s irrelevant. But: What they do. How they make their money. And why exactly these people sit on a “peace” board for Gaza.

Board of Peace – The Top:

Chairman: Donald J. Trump

According to the Board’s charter: Chairman for life, as long as he wishes. He appoints members. He can remove members. He approves the budget. He interprets the charter.

This isn’t a democratic institution. This isn’t an international organization with checks and balances. This is an autocracy. One man has all power. For life.

Compare this to any other international organization: The UN, World Bank, IMF, NATO—all have rotation principles, election procedures, limited terms. The Board of Peace has: Trump. Forever.

Executive Board – The Seven Decision-Makers:

Here it gets interesting. Because this is where the people sit who actually make decisions. Let’s look at who that is.

1. Donald J. Trump – Chairman, see above.

2. Marco Rubio – U.S. Secretary of State

Rubio is the same man who publicly threatened Cuba in January 2026: “If I were sitting in Cuba’s government, I’d be seriously worried.” This is the “diplomat” who’s now supposed to bring peace to Gaza.

3. Steve Witkoff – Special Envoy for Middle East Peace

Here it gets critical.

Steve Witkoff is founder and chairman of the Witkoff Group. The Witkoff Group is one of the largest real estate developers and construction companies in the United States. Projects:

  • Park Lane Hotel, Manhattan – luxury property, billion-dollar project
  • Woolworth Building, Manhattan – historic building, conversion to luxury apartments
  • Miami Worldcenter – one of the largest urban development projects in the U.S.

Witkoff builds hotels. Witkoff builds luxury real estate. Witkoff builds resorts.

And now Witkoff sits on the Board that directs the “reconstruction” of Gaza.

Question: Who will build the hotels Trump showed in his AI video? Who will build the resorts? Who will develop the “Riviera”?

This isn’t an indirect conflict of interest. This is direct economic profit. Witkoff sits on a body that decides on billion-dollar contracts for exactly the industry in which he makes his money.

4. Jared Kushner – Senior Advisor

Trump’s son-in-law. Real estate investor. Architect of the Abraham Accords—those agreements that normalized Arab states with Israel, bypassing the Palestinian question.

Kushner was already Trump’s advisor from 2017-2021. His “peace plan” for the Middle East (2020) was rejected by Palestinians because it provided zero sovereignty. Now he’s back. On the Board of Peace.

Kushner’s business field: real estate and investments. His interest in Gaza “reconstruction”? Let’s call it: obvious.

5. Marc Rowan – CEO Apollo Global Management

Here the financial dimension becomes visible.

Marc Rowan is CEO of Apollo Global Management, one of the world’s largest private equity and investment companies. Apollo manages over $650 billion. Business fields: private equity, infrastructure investments, real estate financing, corporate takeovers.

When Gaza is “rebuilt”—who will finance it? Banks. Investment firms. Private equity funds.

Apollo Global Management specializes in exactly such deals: Large infrastructure projects in unstable regions, high returns, long-term financing structures.

Rowan sits on the Board. Apollo has $650 billion to invest. Gaza needs reconstruction financing.

Connect the dots.

6. Sir Tony Blair – Former UK Prime Minister

Blair, former British Prime Minister (1997-2007), led Britain into the Iraq War in 2003. The justification—weapons of mass destruction—was a lie. 500,000 to 1 million Iraqis died. Blair was never held accountable.

After his term, Blair became Middle East Special Envoy of the Quartet (UN, USA, EU, Russia) from 2007 to 2015. His job: mediate peace between Israel and Palestine. Result: none. The situation continuously deteriorated.

Now Blair is back. As “peacemaker” for Gaza.

His current activity: advisor to governments and corporations, fees in the millions. His organization, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, advises governments in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East—often in areas covering “governance” and “economic development.”

Blair on the Board is political cover. He brings no competence. He brings no credibility. He brings a name that allows Western governments to say: “Look, a former European premier is involved, this must be serious.”

7. Ajay Banga – World Bank President

Banga has been World Bank President since 2023. The World Bank finances development projects worldwide—often with strict conditions that keep countries dependent.

Banga on the Board means: access to World Bank financing for Gaza reconstruction. That sounds good. Until you understand what World Bank financing means: loans. With interest. With conditions. With control.

The World Bank has a long history of financing infrastructure projects that primarily benefit Western corporations, while the debt burden remains with recipient countries. Gaza would have no bargaining power. Gaza would have no choice.

Gaza Executive Board – The Eleven Implementers:

Now it gets even denser. Because the Gaza Executive Board is the operational body—those people who decide on the ground.

Of 11 members, three already sit on the Executive Board: Witkoff, Kushner, Rowan. So they have double power—strategic and operational.

The complete list:

  1. Steve Witkoff – again (construction contractor/real estate)
  2. Jared Kushner – again (real estate/investment)
  3. Marc Rowan – again ($650 billion financing)
  4. Yakir Gabay – Israeli real estate billionaire
  5. Ali Al-Thawadi – Qatar, sports management, Gulf states financing
  6. Minister Reem Al-Hashimy – UAE, Expo 2020 Dubai, Gulf states financing
  7. Hakan Fidan – Turkey, Foreign Minister
  8. General Hassan Rashad – Military/security (details unclear)
  9. Nickolay Mladenov – High Representative for Gaza, ex-UN
  10. Sir Tony Blair – again (political cover)
  11. Sigrid Kaag – Netherlands, former UN coordinator for Lebanon, ex-Finance Minister

Let’s analyze this.

Yakir Gabay – Israeli real estate billionaire. One of the richest men in Israel. Business field: construction and development of residential and commercial real estate.

Gabay sits on the Gaza Executive Board. He’s Israeli. He’s a real estate developer. Gaza is supposed to be “rebuilt.”

Question: Who builds? Who profits?

Ali Al-Thawadi and Minister Reem Al-Hashimy – Qatar and UAE.

The Gulf states. Rich in oil, gas, and money. They’re supposed to finance the reconstruction. That’s their role on the Board: give money.

But money never comes without conditions. Qatar and UAE don’t finance out of charity. They finance to buy influence. To have control. To enforce their interests.

Gaza would be dependent on Gulf states money. Gulf states that are close allies of the U.S. and Israel. Gulf states that support the Abraham Accords. Gulf states that have no interest in a sovereign Palestinian state.

Hakan Fidan – Turkey, Foreign Minister.

Turkey as NATO member, as regional actor, as country with historical connections to Palestine. Fidan brings political legitimacy. His presence is supposed to signal: “Look, it’s not just USA and Israel. Turkey is involved.”

But what can Fidan decide? Can he stop Witkoff? Can he stop Rowan? Can he control the budget? No. He’s one voice among eleven. And Trump controls the entire Board.

General Hassan Rashad – Military/security.

Details about Rashad are sparse in the statement. But his role is clear: security. Order. Control. The military component on the Board.

Nickolay Mladenov – Ex-UN, now “High Representative for Gaza.”

Mladenov was UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East. He knows the region. He has experience. He’s supposed to bring legitimacy—the UN connection.

But Mladenov doesn’t work for the UN. He works for the Board. For Trump. His former UN position is just decoration.

Sigrid Kaag – Netherlands, ex-UN coordinator for Lebanon.

Similar function as Mladenov: international experience, UN background, European face. Kaag is supposed to show Western governments: “Look, a European politician is involved. This must be serious.”

Kaag was Dutch Finance Minister. She understands budgets, financing, economics. Her role on the Board: the “reasonable European” who ensures funds are “properly used.”

But she too: one voice among eleven. And Trump controls everything.

The Analysis: Who Profits?

Of 11 members on the Gaza Executive Board, at least four have direct economic interests in reconstruction:

  • Steve Witkoff – construction contractor, real estate developer
  • Marc Rowan – $650 billion investment capital
  • Jared Kushner – real estate, investments
  • Yakir Gabay – Israeli real estate billionaire

Two more are Gulf states financiers:

  • Qatar (Al-Thawadi)
  • UAE (Al-Hashimy)

The rest are political cover:

  • Blair (UK, ex-Premier)
  • Fidan (Turkey, Foreign Minister)
  • Kaag (Netherlands, ex-UN)
  • Mladenov (ex-UN)
  • Rashad (military)

The pattern is crystal clear:

  1. First destroy (Israel bombs Gaza with U.S. weapons – 26 months, 80,000 dead)
  2. Then “take over” (Trump: “We have it”)
  3. Then found Board (January 2026)
  4. Staff it with people who profit from construction
  5. Financing through Gulf states (in exchange for influence)
  6. Political legitimation through Blair, Kaag, Mladenov
  7. Military control through U.S. general

This isn’t a reconstruction plan. This is a business model.

Jack the Ripper founds the women’s shelter. He owns the construction company that builds it (Witkoff). He owns the bank that finances it (Rowan). He determines which women get in (NCAG under Board control). He provides the security guards (ISF under U.S. general). And he’s boss for life.

And now we ask the question no one asks:

Were the Palestinians asked?

Read the entire Whitehouse.gov statement. All 2,500 words. Search for Palestinian participation in the decision to found this Board.

You’ll find nothing.

Zero Palestinian representatives on the Executive Board. Zero Palestinian representatives on the Gaza Executive Board (unless you count the NCAG – more on that shortly). Zero indication that any Palestinian organization—the Palestinian Authority, the PLO, any Palestinian body—was consulted.

The Board was founded by Trump. Members were appointed by Trump. The structure was designed by Trump.

The 2.3 million people it’s supposedly about? Not asked.

This isn’t partnership. This is paternalism. This is colonialism. This is: “We know what’s good for you.”

V. THE COLONIAL ADMINISTRATION: ANALYSIS OF THE PRIMARY SOURCE

The Whitehouse.gov statement of January 16, 2026 is a masterpiece of obfuscation. It uses corporate speak—that clean, technocratic language that makes power relations invisible.

Let’s read together. Sentence by sentence.

“President Trump’s Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict”

The title itself is a lie. This isn’t a “plan to end the conflict.” This is a plan to administer an annexed territory.

The conflict doesn’t end by installing a colonial administration. The conflict ends through negotiations, through self-determination, through justice. The Board offers none of this.

“The Board of Peace will coordinate international efforts to rebuild Gaza and ensure long-term stability.”

“Coordinate international efforts”—sounds cooperative. Sounds multilateral. It isn’t.

Trump is Chairman for life. Trump appoints all members. Trump controls the budget. This isn’t coordination. This is dictatorship.

“Ensure long-term stability”—stability for whom? For the Palestinians who lost their land? Or for the investors who want to make profit there?

“The Executive Board will oversee policy direction and resource allocation.”

“Resource allocation”—which resources? Whose resources?

Gaza has gas. Off Gaza’s coast lie an estimated 1 trillion cubic meters of natural gas (Gaza Marine Field). Discovered in 2000. Never extracted—because Israel blocked extraction.

Who will decide after “reconstruction” whether this gas is extracted? Who will award extraction licenses? Who will profit?

The Board. Under Trump. With Rowan ($650 billion investment capital) and Gulf states financiers on the Executive Board.

“The Gaza Executive Board will implement reconstruction projects and humanitarian assistance.”

“Implement”—execute. Not “decide.” Not “plan together with Palestinians.” But: implement what the Executive Board decides.

Palestinians are not subjects. They are objects. They are recipients of “humanitarian assistance.” They are not decision-makers.

“The National Committee for Administration of Gaza (NCAG) will manage day-to-day governance under the supervision of the Board.”

Here comes the NCAG—the only body with Palestinian participation.

But read carefully: “under the supervision of the Board.”

The NCAG has no sovereignty. It has no independence. It’s an administration under supervision. A colonial administration.

Who sits on the NCAG? According to the statement: “Dr. Ali Sha’ath and other technocratic leaders.”

“Technocratic leaders”—not elected representatives. Not democratically legitimized. Technocrats. Experts. People who are “competent” but have no political mandate.

Why technocrats? Because technocrats have no political agenda. They implement. They administer. They obey.

An elected Palestinian government would make demands. Would demand sovereignty. Would say no to deals that sell out Palestine.

Technocrats don’t do that. That’s their function.

“The International Stabilization Force (ISF), led by Major General Jasper Jeffers (US), will ensure security and facilitate demilitarization.”

Military control. A U.S. general. No UN troops. No international force under UN command. But: ISF under U.S. leadership.

“Facilitate demilitarization”—whose demilitarization? Hamas, Islamic Jihad—yes, that’s clear. But also any Palestinian resistance. Any armed self-defense. Any ability to defend against attacks.

Gaza will be demilitarized. Under control of a U.S. general. While Israel remains the strongest military power in the region, nuclear armed, untouched.

This isn’t “stabilization.” This is disarmament of an occupied people.

“The Board will work in alignment with UN Security Council Resolution 2803 (2025).”

Here the UN comes into play—but only as fig leaf.

Resolution 2803 is referenced to suggest legitimacy. But the Board is not a UN institution. It’s a Trump institution.

The UN has no control over the Board. The UN cannot appoint or remove members. The UN cannot control the budget. The UN can only watch.

This is UN-washing: The UN reference is used to suggest international legitimacy without the UN having any actual power.

Compare this to real UN missions: UNIFIL in Lebanon, UNMIK in Kosovo, UNAMA in Afghanistan. The UN leads these missions. The UN controls the mandate. The UN is accountable to the Security Council.

The Board? Accountable to Trump.

The Four Levels of Control:

Let’s summarize the structure:

Level 1 – Board of Peace:

  • Chairman: Trump (for life)
  • Power: Appoints members, removes members, approves budget, interprets charter
  • Accountability: none

Level 2 – Executive Board (7 members):

  • Decides on strategy, budget, policy
  • Staffed with: U.S. government (Trump, Rubio), investors (Witkoff, Rowan, Kushner), political cover (Blair, Banga)
  • Palestinian participation: zero

Level 3 – Gaza Executive Board (11 members):

  • Implements projects
  • Staffed with: same investors (Witkoff, Rowan, Kushner again), Gulf states financiers, political cover
  • Palestinian participation: zero

Level 4 – NCAG:

  • Manages “day-to-day governance”
  • Under Board supervision
  • Palestinian technocrats – no elected representatives
  • No sovereignty

Plus: ISF (International Stabilization Force)

  • Military control
  • Commander: U.S. General Jasper Jeffers
  • Tasks: “security,” “demilitarization,” “humanitarian access control”

This isn’t partnership. This isn’t self-governance. This is colonial rule in the 21st century.

Palestinians have zero control over:

  • Who sits on the Board
  • Which projects are financed
  • How the budget is spent
  • Whether and when they can govern themselves
  • Their own resources (gas, water, land)
  • Their own security (ISF under U.S. command)

They have: a few technocrats in the NCAG who manage “day-to-day governance” under supervision.

This is apartheid by another name.

VI. THE PALESTINIANS: DISENFRANCHISED IN THEIR OWN LAND

While the Board of Peace is being founded, while billionaires and investors decide Gaza’s future, one question arises: What do the people this is supposedly about actually say?

The answer is simple: They weren’t asked. And when they spoke anyway, they were ignored.

Wassel Abu Yousuf, member of the PLO Executive Committee, said in February 2025 about Trump’s plans:

“This is a clown gag. There will be no resorts, no Riviera in the Middle East. What Trump wants to do, he should do elsewhere, but not on the backs of the Palestinian people. This is the land of our ancestors and parents, and much blood has been shed to defend it.”

This isn’t rhetoric. This is reality. Palestinian families have lived in Gaza for generations. Their grandparents were driven from their villages in what is now Israel in 1948 (the Nakba—the catastrophe). They fled to Gaza. They thought it would be temporary. It’s been 76 years.

Now Trump wants to displace them again. This time with promises of “resorts” and “development.”

Hamas Government Media Office, February 28, 2025:

“By portraying Gaza as if it were a land without people, this desperate attempt aims to legitimize the ongoing ethnic cleansing conducted by the Israeli occupation with clear American support.”

“A land without people”—that was the Zionist propaganda in the 19th and early 20th century: “A land without people for a people without land.” It was a lie then. Palestine was inhabited. By Palestinians.

Now the same lie is recycled for Gaza. Trump’s AI video shows Palestinian children running through rubble toward gleaming high-rises—as if they were extras in a real estate commercial. Not as people with rights, with history, with claim to their own land.

Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative, March 2025:

“Trump treats Gaza like a piece of real estate he can buy or sell. But Gaza doesn’t belong to him. Gaza doesn’t belong to the U.S. Gaza doesn’t belong to Israel. Gaza belongs to the Palestinians who have lived there for centuries. What Trump proposes is theft. Robbery. Colonialism in the 21st century.”

Barghouti calls it clearly: This is theft.

When A destroys B’s house, then says “I’m taking it,” then A builds their own house there and says “This belongs to me now”—what do you call that?

Robbery. Theft. Expropriation.

International law calls it: Annexation. Article 2(4) of the UN Charter prohibits “force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.” The Rome Statute (Article 8) calls “appropriation of property in occupied territory” a war crime.

But the Board is founded anyway. Without Palestinian consent. Without Palestinian participation in the decision. With Palestinian “technocrats” in an administrative role, controlled from above.

The Reality in Numbers:

While Trump posts his AI video in February 2025, while he talks about “Riviera” and “diamonds,” Gaza looks like this:

  • 80,000 dead civilians since October 2023 (conservative estimate; some sources speak of over 100,000)
  • 86-90% of all buildings destroyed or heavily damaged
  • All five universities in Gaza completely destroyed
  • 80% of all schools destroyed or unusable
  • All hospitals out of operation or heavily damaged – no functioning healthcare
  • No functioning water or sewage system – epidemic danger
  • No continuous power supply except generators with scarce fuel
  • 2.3 million people without permanent shelter – in tents, ruins, emergency shelters
  • Famine: UN warns of hunger catastrophe, children dying of malnutrition
  • No economy: unemployment over 95%, no businesses, no production, no income

This is the reality the Board of Peace will decide over.

These aren’t abstract numbers. These are 2.3 million people. Families. Children. Elderly. Sick. People who have lost everything—home, relatives, future.

And now billionaires come and say: “We’re building resorts here.”

The Unasked Questions:

The Whitehouse.gov statement answers many questions. But it doesn’t ask the most important ones.

Question 1: Do Palestinians have right of return?

2.3 million people in Gaza. Many want to return to their homes—the homes that were destroyed. Will they be compensated? Will they be allowed to rebuild? Or will their plots be given to investors?

The statement is silent.

Question 2: Who owns the land?

When Witkoff builds hotels, when Gabay erects apartments, when Rowan finances infrastructure—on whose land do these buildings stand? Who sold the rights to the land? Who asked the Palestinians whose families have lived there for generations?

The statement is silent.

Question 3: Who controls the resources?

Gaza has gas. The Gaza Marine Field off the coast is estimated at 1 trillion cubic meters. Who will award extraction licenses? Who will profit?

The statement is silent.

Question 4: When does occupation end?

The Board is “permanent.” Trump is Chairman “for life.” The ISF “stabilizes” indefinitely. When will Palestinians govern themselves? When does foreign control end?

The statement is silent.

Question 5: What happens to those who refuse?

Not all Palestinians will cooperate. Not all will accept that strangers decide over their land. What happens to resistance? What does the ISF do with people who refuse to leave their homes? Who refuse to sell land to investors?

The statement is silent. But we know the answer: Military “stabilization.” “Demilitarization.” “Security.”

That means: violence.

Nakba 1948 vs. Trump Plan 2025:

There’s a historical parallel. It’s not perfect, but it’s unmistakable.

In 1948, during Israel’s founding, about 750,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes. They fled to the Gaza Strip, to the West Bank, to Lebanon, Syria, Jordan. They thought it would be temporary. They took the keys to their houses. “We’ll come back.”

They never came back. Israel declared them “absent” and confiscated their property. The right of return, enshrined in UN Resolution 194 (1948), was never implemented.

Palestinians call this the Nakba—the catastrophe.

Now, 2025/2026, it’s supposed to happen again. Trump wants to “relocate” 2.1 million people from Gaza. To Egypt, to Jordan, somewhere. He promises “development” and “resorts.” But the people should leave.

This is Nakba 2.0.

The difference: In 1948, displacement was portrayed retrospectively as humanitarian tragedy. In 2025, it’s sold in advance as “peace plan.”

But the result is the same: A people loses its land.

VII. INTERNATIONAL LAW: WHAT JURISTS SAY

The Board of Peace violates international law. This isn’t opinion. This isn’t political interpretation. This is the assessment of the world’s leading international law experts.

International Bar Association (IBA), March 2025:

The IBA is the largest international organization of lawyers and bar associations. It represents over 80,000 lawyers in more than 170 countries. Their statements on international law carry weight.

Sara Elizabeth Dill, Co-Vice Chair of the IBA War Crimes Committee:

“The notion that permanent displacement would do anything positive for people in Gaza is an absolute farce and totally contrary to international law.”

Kirsty Sutherland, Co-Chair of the same committee:

“The international community cannot accept that state authorities destroy a foreign territory—people’s homes, hospitals—and then sell it or facilitate its ‘purchase’ by another state, as this would create an intolerable precedent.”

The IBA identifies specific violations:

1. Rome Statute, Article 7(1)(d) – Crimes Against Humanity:

“Deportation or forcible transfer of population” is a crime against humanity.

Trump’s plan envisions “relocating” 2.1 million people from Gaza. That’s forced transfer. That’s deportation. That’s a crime against humanity.

2. Rome Statute, Article 8(2)(a)(iv) – War Crimes:

“Extensive, unlawful and wanton destruction and appropriation of property, not justified by military necessity” is a war crime.

Gaza was destroyed. Now the land is to be “rebuilt”—by investors who profit there. The land belongs to Palestinians. Their homes were destroyed. Now foreign actors are supposed to build and own there.

That’s appropriation of property. That’s a war crime.

3. Fourth Geneva Convention, Article 49:

“Individual or mass forcible transfers, as well as deportations of protected persons from occupied territory […] are prohibited, regardless of their motive.”

Trump wants to relocate 2.1 million people. The Geneva Convention prohibits this. Explicitly. Without exception.

4. Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 13(2):

“Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.”

The right of return. Palestinians have the right to return to their homeland. Trump wants to prevent them. That violates human rights.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres:

Guterres warned in March 2025 of “risk of ethnic cleansing” in Gaza.

Ethnic cleansing is defined as: Systematic displacement of an ethnic or religious group from an area.

That’s exactly what Trump proposes.

UN Experts, February 28, 2025:

A statement from UN Special Rapporteurs:

“Shocking threats to ‘take over’ Gaza would shatter fundamental rules of the international order. It is manifestly illegal to occupy and annex a foreign territory by force and forcibly deport its population.”

“Manifestly illegal”—not “problematic,” not “should be reviewed,” but: illegal.

The Three Dimensions of International Law Violation:

Trump’s plan and the Board of Peace violate international law in three dimensions:

Dimension 1 – Annexation:

Article 2(4) UN Charter prohibits “force against the territorial integrity of a state.”

Trump says: “Gaza would be owned by the United States.”

That’s annexation. That’s illegal.

Dimension 2 – Forced Transfer:

Fourth Geneva Convention, Rome Statute—both prohibit forced transfer.

Trump wants to “relocate” 2.1 million people.

That’s illegal.

Dimension 3 – Appropriation of Property:

Rome Statute, Article 8(2)—appropriation of property in occupied territory is a war crime.

The Board awards reconstruction projects to investors. On land that belongs to Palestinians.

That’s illegal.

The Impunity:

The tragic part: All these legal violations have no consequences.

Venezuela, January 3, 2026: Triple breach of international law. Consequences: none.

Iran, June 2025: Bombing without mandate. Consequences: none.

Tanker seizures, January 2026: Piracy on high seas. Consequences: none.

Greenland, January 2026: Invasion threat against NATO partner. Consequences: none.

Board of Peace, January 2026: Annexation, forced transfer, appropriation. Consequences: ?

The answer is predictable: none.

Why? Because the U.S. has veto power in the UN Security Council. Because no country is willing to impose sanctions against the U.S. Because U.S. military and economy are so dominant that no one dares hold them accountable.

This is the post-legal world order: Law only applies to the weak. The strong do what they want.

Michael Hollister is a geopolitical analyst and investigative journalist. He served six years in the German military, including peacekeeping deployments in the Balkans (SFOR, KFOR), followed by 14 years in IT security management. His analysis draws on primary sources to examine European militarization, Western intervention policy, and shifting power dynamics across Asia. A particular focus of his work lies in Southeast Asia, where he investigates strategic dependencies, spheres of influence, and security architectures. Hollister combines operational insider perspective with uncompromising systemic critique—beyond opinion journalism. His work appears on his bilingual website (German/English) www.michael-hollister.com, at Substack at https://michaelhollister.substack.com and in investigative outlets across the German-speaking world and the Anglosphere.

SOURCE LIST

Primary Sources:

1. Whitehouse.gov – Official Board of Peace Statement: “Statement on President Trump’s Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict” (January 16, 2026)
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2026/01/statement-on-president-trumps-comprehensive-plan-to-end-the-gaza-conflict/

2. Board of Peace – Reporting & Analysis:

Background Information on Board Members:

3. Steve Witkoff:

  • Witkoff Group: Real estate developer
  • Projects: Park Lane Hotel, Woolworth Building, Miami Worldcenter

4. Marc Rowan:

  • CEO Apollo Global Management
  • $650+ billion assets under management

5. Jared Kushner:

  • Real estate/investment
  • Architect of Abraham Accords

6. Yakir Gabay:

  • Israeli real estate billionaire

7. Ajay Banga:

  • World Bank President since 2023

8. Sir Tony Blair:

  • UK Prime Minister 1997-2007
  • Iraq War 2003

International Law Assessments:

9. IBA – Detailed Analysis:
https://www.ibanet.org/Trump-Gaza-Riviera-scheme-utterly-contrary-to-international-law

10. Rome Statute – Full Text:
https://www.icc-cpi.int/sites/default/files/RS-Eng.pdf

11. Fourth Geneva Convention – Full Text:
https://www.icrc.org/en/doc/resources/documents/treaty/geneva-convention-iv.htm

12. Just Security: “Trump’s Gaza Plan is Absurd and an Affront to International Law”
https://www.justsecurity.org/108050/trump-gaza-plan-absurd-international-law/

13. Newsweek: “Trump’s Gaza plan ‘worst idea since Iraq’: experts”
https://www.newsweek.com/trumps-gaza-plan-palestinians-foreign-policy-iraq-2026604

Gaza Context and Destruction:

14. Humanitarian Situation in Gaza (as of January 2026):

  • 80,000+ dead civilians
  • 86-90% destruction
  • Sources: UN OCHA, WHO, Palestinian Ministry of Health

Palestinian Voices:

15. Wassel Abu Yousuf (PLO)

16. Hamas Government Media Office

17. Dr. Mustafa Barghouti (Palestinian National Initiative)

UN Documents:

18. UN Security Council Resolution 2803 (2025):

  • Referenced by the Board

19. UN Resolution 194 (1948):

  • Right of return for Palestinian refugees

Historical Context:

20. Nakba 1948:

  • 750,000 Palestinian refugees

Gaza Marine Gas Field:

21. Natural gas reserves off Gaza coast:

  • 1 trillion cubic meters estimated

Own Articles:

22. “Palestine Recognition”
https://www.michael-hollister.com/2025/11/16/palestine-recognition-five-states-declare-statehood-while-funding-the-war-that-destroys-it/

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