Every proposal for Gaza’s “day after” comes dressed in a different outfit. Some emphasize reconstruction. Others focus on governance reform. Others stress regional cooperation or international oversight. The language changes. The sequencing shifts. The tone softens. But beneath every version lies the same unspoken question, a question no one wants to answer plainly: What, exactly, is Phase II, and who enforces it?
Phase II is the polite name given to an impolite reality. It is the stage in which Hamas is supposed to cease being an armed force, Gaza is supposed to cease being militarized, and Israel is supposed to accept that the threat has been neutralized. It is also the stage that remains deliberately undefined in the only way that matters. President Donald Trump speaks confidently of progress, sequencing, and moving forward. Diplomats speak of frameworks, timelines, and confidence building measures. Committees are proposed. Funds are pledged. Yet Phase II is never described honestly, because honesty would require answering three questions no one wants to own.
Who takes the weapons? Who verifies compliance? And who acts when compliance fails?
Calling it “Phase II” does not solve the problem. It merely postpones it.