Many balls in play in the Middle East
Regardless of the final plan, it shows continued US engagement on Gaza, which is seen as positive for Israel.
hat a wonderful difference to be in Israel after the release of the living hostages and with the ongoing repatriation of those deceased nearing completion.
US President Donald Trump is being hailed as a hero and deserving of multiple Nobel Peace prizes.
There is widespread acceptance of the overall American 20 point peace plan by Israelis, whilst at the same time, very deep scepticism that it is actually deliverable. Not a single Israeli I met thought that this was more than a pause, even if an extended one. But a most welcome pause at that.
On the one hand, only the Arab/Muslim world is capable of bringing the Palestinians to any compromise and this is Trump’s strength – his strong relationship with them. On the other, the promotion of Turkey and Qatar to central roles is a major threat to Israel, philosophically and materially.
More quickly than Israel seems to be able to keep pace with, old understandings are now fluid, many balls are in play and every situation can develop in multiple ways. For example: Egypt has a huge build-up of military forces that goes way beyond the peace agreement; Israel’s military edge is now a grey area with Saudi Arabia, for instance, to get the most sophisticated US planes; Syria’s al-Sharaa, strongly backed by Turkey, has been welcomed in the White House; a real war still rages with Hezbollah in Lebanon; and Iran is threatening to attack Israel again. All this against the background of the Saudi visit last week to the White House and the American sponsored United Nations resolution that passed the Security Council.
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