Removing Blair from Gaza’s TPC is necessary correction of historic mistake

Tony Blair’s anticipated role quickly emerged as a source of deep concern for many stakeholders.By Tamer QarmoutAssociate Professor in Public Policy at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies.Published On 10 Dec 2025Many actors involved in negotiations to end Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza and begin its reconstruction breathed a collective sigh of relief when it was announced that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, one of the most polarising figures in international diplomacy, was removed from the proposed “board of peace”, tasked with overseeing the transitional phase in the Strip. The announcement came at a highly sensitive moment, just as negotiations entered their second phase, focused on the security and economic arrangements necessary for stabilising the Strip and launching reconstruction efforts.United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803, adopted on November 17, 2025, and aligned with United States President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace proposal, granted an international mandate to form a transitional peace council (TPC), deploy a stabilisation force, and set a framework stretching until the end of 2027. In the midst of shaping this new transitional architecture, Blair’s anticipated role quickly emerged as a source of deep concern for many stakeholders.Since the Trump administration began engaging in efforts to end the war, several plans have circulated. Yet the plan attributed to Blair appeared closest to Trump’s thinking and may have informed key elements of the vision he unveiled in late September. That alone reignited controversy: why would placing Blair in such a consequential position be viewed as a grave misstep?Blair carries a heavy political legacy rooted in what many consider the most disastrous foreign policy decision of the 21st century: the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which he championed alongside then-US President George W Bush under the false pretext of weapons of mass destruction (as later confirmed by the United Kingdom’s Chilcot inquiry). The war devastated Iraq, fuelled sectarian conflict, opened the door to years of foreign intervention, and resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. For many across the region and beyond, Blair became a symbol of unaccountable power and catastrophic decision-making.