Former U.K. Prime Minister Tony Blair is once again at the center of a major international controversy, as reports confirm he is being considered to lead a postwar administrative body in Gaza under a new peace plan proposed by U.S. President Donald Trump. The plan, which has drawn both intrigue and skepticism across the Middle East and beyond, was thrust into the spotlight on October 2, 2025, when Blair's imminent visit to Cairo was reported by Al-Araby Al-Jadeed and further detailed by NPR and other international outlets.
Blair is scheduled to meet with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and General Intelligence chief Hassan Rashad in the coming days. According to sources cited by Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, the visit was arranged through mediation by the United Arab Emirates, following UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed's recent trip to Cairo. The purpose? To allow Blair to present his vision for Gaza's future governance, one that aligns with the revised Trump plan and positions Blair as the executive head of an international administration for the territory.
The Trump plan, as described by NPR, is a sweeping 20-point proposal to end the war in Gaza. It calls for the creation of a "Board of Peace" chaired by Trump himself, with "very distinguished leaders" from other countries — Blair being the only individual named so far. Blair has called Trump's plan "bold and intelligent," and has reportedly been involved in discussions about Gaza's future for months, including a visit to the White House in August to meet with Trump's adviser Jared Kushner.
Yet the proposal has been met with sharp resistance from regional stakeholders. Egypt, for one, has rejected the U.S. suggestion to base the administration's headquarters in El-Arish, North Sinai, instead advocating for Gaza to be run by a purely Palestinian authority — specifically, a technocratic "community support committee" that would exclude Hamas. Cairo's amendments reflect a broader regional discomfort with foreign-led governance models, particularly those seen as echoing colonial-era interventions.
Palestinian factions themselves have been fiercely debating how to respond to the Trump-Blair blueprint. According to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, some have floated the idea of accepting the plan only if Washington formally recognizes a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders — a move that would shift diplomatic pressure onto the U.S. and Israel. However, the U.S. has shown no sign of embracing this demand, despite recent symbolic recognitions of Palestine by countries such as France, Britain, and Canada.
Hamas, the group currently in control of Gaza, has been unequivocal in its rejection of any proposal that demands its disarmament or the removal of its military capabilities without a parallel commitment to the creation of a Palestinian state and a full Israeli withdrawal. A senior Hamas source told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that such terms are "worthless and cannot be built upon," arguing that they violate international law, which upholds the right of occupied peoples to resist and determine their own future.
On the international stage, Blair's selection has prompted a wave of skepticism — and, in some quarters, outright hostility. His legacy as the U.K.'s leader during the 2003 invasion of Iraq remains a major sticking point. The war, which resulted in the deaths of an estimated 200,000 civilians and triggered massive protests, led to a dramatic collapse in Blair's domestic popularity. A 2016 U.K. government inquiry concluded that Blair's decision to join the U.S.-led invasion was based on flawed intelligence and made hastily. Blair himself later offered a tearful apology, saying he felt "more sorrow, regret and apology than you may ever know or can believe."
Blair's subsequent role as the Quartet's Middle East envoy from 2007 to 2015 did little to repair his reputation in the region. Palestinian officials accused him of favoring Israel and lobbying against their bid for statehood at the United Nations. In a rare admission, Blair has since remarked that the international community should have engaged with Hamas following its 2006 election victory, rather than supporting a boycott that deepened Palestinian divisions and ultimately led to Hamas's takeover of Gaza.
His financial dealings during this period have also come under scrutiny. While serving as Quartet envoy, Blair maintained lucrative consulting contracts with various Arab governments and financial institutions, reportedly earning over $1 million annually, according to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
Palestinian reactions to Blair's potential appointment have been blunt. Husam Badran, a member of the Hamas political bureau, told Al Jazeera, "Tony Blair is not a welcome figure in the Palestinian cause, and therefore any plan associated with this person is an ill omen for the Palestinian people." Francesca Albanese, the United Nations' special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian Territories, was even more direct on social media: "Tony Blair? Hell no. Hands off Palestine. Shall we meet in The Hague perhaps?" — a pointed reference to the International Criminal Court.
Even within the U.K., Blair remains a divisive figure. Recent YouGov polling cited by NPR shows that 43% of Britons hold an unfavorable view of him, compared to just 25% with a positive opinion. When asked by the BBC about Blair's involvement in Gaza, British writer and lecturer Ash Sarkar quipped, "It's because Satan was unavailable."
Some, though, point to Blair's experience negotiating the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which helped end decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland, as evidence of his conflict-resolution acumen. His former political secretary, John McTernan, told NPR, "He will never back off of something because people say it's difficult. He settled an 800-year conflict between Britain and Ireland. So he's a man who's actually delivered a peace process and knows all the issues around negotiating and delivering."
Despite these credentials, many in the Middle East see Blair's return as emblematic of a Western tendency to impose solutions without adequate consultation with those directly affected. Omar Awadallah, the Palestinian Authority's deputy foreign affairs minister, told NPR that while he "welcomes" Trump's efforts as an opportunity to end the bloodshed in Gaza, there must be further discussion on the plan's details. "About the transitional government or transitional committee, I think we need work on this to change the dynamics and to enter into a dialogue on the details," he said.
The Trump plan itself is ambitious, requiring Hamas to release all Israeli hostages at the start of a ceasefire, with Israeli withdrawal from Gaza tied to the group's disarmament. Yet, as Josh Paul, a former U.S. security coordinator in the region, wrote in The Guardian, a "Kushner-Blair proposal" for Gaza may be seen by many as a "western occupational government" — one that is unlikely to win the trust or cooperation of the people it aims to govern.
As Blair prepares for his Cairo meetings, the world is watching closely. The fate of Gaza — and the credibility of yet another international peace initiative — hangs in the balance, with history, politics, and public opinion all converging in a region weary of outside interventions and broken promises.
