The reveal of U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “annexation plan” to colonize more swaths of land and further strip Palestinians of their statehood has been met with global resistance.

By Rimsha Syed 

Rimsha Syed is an Austin-based Pakistani Muslim daughter of fierce immigrants. In Urdu, her name means a bouquet of flowers. Rimsha is a former ORANGE staff writer who now works with the Texas AFL-CIO to further worker, immigrant, and civil rights and also continues to organize in her local community. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2019 where she studied journalism and women and gender studies.

The plan, drafted without the input of any Palestinians, seeks to solidify Israeli control of Palestinian territories and hand Israeli security forces express permission to defend all territory west of the Jordan River and the whole of historic Palestine by means of “air, sea, land and electromagnetic fields,” according to the prime minister. Apart from the already greedy demand comes the realization that the world’s greatest imperialist forces are intentional in removing any possibility that Palestinians — who were expelled in 1948 — could return to their homeland. 

It does not come as a shock that Palestinians are being treated as second class citizens by way of an “offer” doomed for failure and cynically created to draw rejection. What’s on the table is dismembered enclaves connected by some so-called tunnels, further denying Palestinians of their freedom or even basic human rights. This plan violates every red line stipulated by the Palestinian Authority and ignores every resolution of international law. 

Palestinian factions have echoed their steadfast resistance; thousands demonstrated in the occupied West Bank, raising signs that read “Palestine Not For Sale” in response to the plan to annex more of their land. Gaza also came to a virtual standstill with schools and universities suspending classes and local vendors shutting down shops. According to Agence France-Presse at least a dozen West Bank Palestinians were injured by Israeli security forces the day after the plan’s reveal. 

In light of this call to action, groups like the Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC), based in Austin, have organized emergency protests, calling the Trump-Netanyahu plan the “sham of the century.” PSC rejects any “peace” deal that aims to remove Palestinians from the conversation and strips them of their right to self-determination, a sentiment shared by Palestinians in the homeland and in the diaspora. 

Students gathered at the UT tower, keffiyeh clad with Palestinian flags in hand, energized by the collective need to mobilize students and shake the walls of their campus until every passerby became aware of the American-Israeli colonial-minded racism. 

“I think it was important to demonstrate that the complete disregard of Palestinians and their sovereignty over their land by the U.S. and Israel will not be met with silence by people in Austin or all over the country,” said Isabel Salas, current PSC steering member. “A lot of people don’t understand the real impact of actions such as the ‘Deal of the Century’ because the problem is so far from home, but taking the time to protest against these policies and inform people of what the implications are is an integral part of building the Palestinian movement locally.” 

Since it’s origin, PSC has played an integral role in the Palestinian movement by taking control of the narrative on college campuses in the U.S. and connecting them to larger Palestinian resistance efforts. Through direct actions and teach-ins, PSC educates college students on the material links between American imperialism in the Middle East, the occupation of Palestine, and state violence against oppressed people in the U.S. 

An estimated 60 students and community members showed out to the protest, which was planned and executed in a little over 24 hours. Some students even prepared speeches to share with the group. 

“We join millions of Palestinians and allies across the globe to condemn the legalization of Israeli settlements in the West Bank,” said Mehlam Bhuriwala, PSC steering member and fourth-year student. “I am not speaking to you today as a member of the Palestinian diaspora. I am the son of Pakistani immigrants. My family was displaced in 1947 from India and forced to flee our home to avoid intense ethnic cleansing and to settle in a new land that was supposed to be a safe place for them.”

While Trump seeks to characterize this plan as a “win” for the Palestinian people, the “Deal of Century” is a recycled approach that simply puts the American Stamp of Approval on the continuation of illegal Israeli apartheid, reimagined as formalized annexation. A “peace” plan that legitimizes and even expands the scope of Israel’s human rights abuses is no plan at all.

For a century, western powers have exploited their authority in drafting policies about Palestine in adherence to the demands of Zionism. These proposals have destroyed Palestinian lives and land for the sake of creating a Jewish majority in a land overwhelmingly populated by Palestinians. No degree of “negotiations” that don’t immediately guarantee the right of return will turn into a formula for peace, that much is certain.