When President Donald Trump flies dwelling from the Middle East on Monday, the area fading from view out his home windows will undoubtedly be a modified one: the hostages who suffered underground in Gaza the final two years are free, and the bombs that leveled the Strip have stopped falling.
But even the valedictory set-pieces that had been organized for him in Israel and Egypt couldn’t masks the main uncertainty that also lingers — together with the primary query of whether or not the Israel-Hamas war is, in truth, over.
Trump insists it is, and used a lengthy and winding speech to the Israeli Knesset to praise his counterpart, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for having the “guts” to acknowledge the time was proper to end his two-year army operation that adopted Hamas’ lethal October 7, 2023, assault.
Netanyahu, nevertheless, has acknowledged no such factor. In truth, the night earlier than Trump arrived, the Israeli chief made clear the army marketing campaign “wasn’t over” amid persistent threats to Israel’s safety. He stays beneath stress from far-right members of his coalition authorities to proceed going after Hamas in Gaza.
And after a considerably puzzling back-and-forth, Netanyahu declined to journey with Trump to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, to attend the deal’s official investiture, regardless of a last-minute, behind-the-scenes try by the US president to get him there.
The Israeli chief did affirm in his speech: “I am committed to this peace.” But neither he nor Trump supplied many clues about how they might strategy the next, more complex, phase of the negotiations.
“The phases are all a little bit mixed in with each other,” Trump mentioned, considerably vaguely, throughout a assembly with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.
For Trump, not less than, the query of whether or not the war had reached a everlasting end wasn’t up for debate.
“The war is over. The war is over, you understand that?” Trump instructed reporters aboard Air Force One shortly after departing from Washington for his journey.
It was a sentiment he repeated as soon as he’d arrived, and a viewpoint he attributed on to Netanyahu throughout his remarks to an enthusiastic parliament.
“I just want to congratulate you for having the courage to say, ‘That’s it. We’ve won, and now let’s enjoy our lives,’” he mentioned at one level.
Trump warned that extra war would solely degrade Netanyahu’s legacy. And he tried to preempt any questions on when the war would end completely by insisting it already had.
“Israel, with our help, has won all that they can by force of arms. You’ve won. I mean, you’ve won,” he mentioned. “Now it’s time to translate these victories against terrorists on the battlefield into the ultimate prize of peace and prosperity for the entire Middle East. It’s about time you were able to enjoy the fruits of your labor.”
Trump envisions a reworked Middle East, one the place the Abraham Accords he began during his first term that normalized diplomatic ties between Israel and its Arab neighbors are expanded and the place historic enmities are lastly put to relaxation.
He spoke repeatedly about attempting to convey Iran into the fold. And his diplomats are already at work attempting to grab what they view as a slim window of alternative to show the ceasefire association into a broader regional realignment.
“It’s not simply about restoring Gaza. It is about transforming the region,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio mentioned alongside Trump in Egypt.
Convincing Arab leaders to each bankroll the rebuilding of Gaza and enhance their diplomatic ties with Israel might nonetheless be a tough job. Gulf nations, which Trump mentioned repeatedly this week have been keen to make use of their huge wealth to rebuild the devastated enclave, gained’t commit earlier than getting assurances that Israel gained’t restart its bombing marketing campaign.
And many leaders — together with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of the strongest Gulf state — need agency alerts that the course of underway will end result in an eventual Palestinian state.
Those are all issues that will require buy-in from Netanyahu that he’s to date been unwilling to offer, even beneath stress from Trump.
“He’s not the easiest guy to deal with,” Trump mentioned of Netanyahu on Monday. “But that’s what makes him great.”
Trump has tried to gloss over a few of the variations. But he’s additionally labored to increase the huge reputation he enjoys amongst Israelis onto Netanyahu, who is much much less widespread for a way he’s dealt with the battle.
He sought to provide the prime minister a enhance throughout his speech by urging Israel’s president to grant him a pardon amid an ongoing corruption trial, a outstanding entry into home politics.
“Cigars and champagne — who the hell cares,” Trump exclaimed, a reference to the accusation Netanyahu had acquired costly items like cigars and champagne from abroad businessmen.
Whether the flattery and political reinforcement shapes how Netanyahu will proceed stays to be seen. Steve Witkoff, the president’s international envoy, and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, have already begun attempting to implement the subsequent part of the deal.
“We’ll be here quite a bit. That’s at the direction of the president,” Witkoff mentioned in Egypt.
For Trump, nevertheless, historical past was already in the air.
“This is one of the most important days for world peace in 50 years; that’s not an exaggeration,” Rubio mentioned Monday, which drew a dissatisfied response from Trump.
“Only 50?” the president mentioned incredulously.
“Maybe 100,” Rubio allowed.