The Way Trump Achieved a Gaza Breakthrough That Eluded Biden

Initially, the Israeli air strike on the Hamas militant negotiating team in Qatar appeared like another escalation that pushed the prospect of peace out of reach.

This strike on 9 September violated the territorial integrity of an US partner and threatened expanding the hostilities into a region-wide war.

Negotiations appeared to be in ruins.

Instead, it turned out to be a pivotal event that culminated in a deal, announced by President Donald Trump, to release all remaining hostages.

That represents a goal that Trump, and President Joe Biden before him, had pursued for nearly two years.

This marks just the first step towards a more durable peace, and the specifics of Hamas disarmament, Gaza governance and full Israeli withdrawal remain to be negotiated.

But if this deal holds, it could be Donald Trump's signature achievement of his second term - one that eluded Biden and his administration.

Trump's unique style and crucial relationships with Israel and the Middle Eastern nations seem to have played a role in this breakthrough.

However, as with most foreign policy wins, there were also factors involved beyond the influence of both leaders.

Strong Ties Which Eluded Biden

In public, Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are all smiles.

The president likes to say that Israel has no greater ally, and the Israeli leader has described Trump as Israel's "most supportive friend in the US presidency". Moreover these positive statements have been matched by actions.

Throughout his initial time in office, Trump relocated the US embassy in the country from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and abandoned a long-held US position that Jewish communities in the occupied territories are illegal, the view under global norms.

When Israel began its bombing campaign against Iran in the summer, Trump directed American aircraft to strike the nation's atomic sites with its largest non-nuclear weapons.

Those visible shows of support may have given the president the leeway to exert more pressure on Israel in private. As per sources, Trump's negotiator, Steve Witkoff, browbeat Netanyahu in the latter part of the year into accepting a halt in fighting in exchange for the freeing of a number of captives.

When Israel attacked against Syria's military in July, even bombing a Christian church, Trump urged his counterpart to change course.

Trump displayed a level of will and pressure on an Israeli prime minister that is virtually unprecedented, says an analyst of the a think tank. "It's unheard of of an US leader directly instructing an Israeli prime minister that you're going to have to comply or else."

Biden's relationship with the Israeli administration was always more strained.

His administration's "bear hug approach" argued that the United States had to embrace the nation publicly in order to allow it to moderate the nation's military actions in private.

Beneath this was the president's nearly half-century of support for the state, as well as deep disagreements within his Democratic coalition over the conflict in Gaza. Every step the leader took risked fracturing his own political backing, whereas Trump's solid Republican base provided him more room to act.

In the end, internal considerations or personal relationships may have had little impact than the reality that, throughout Biden's presidency, the Israeli government was unwilling to reach an agreement.

Eight months into his new administration, with the Islamic Republic chastened, the militant group to its northern border significantly reduced and Gaza devastated, all its key military goals had been accomplished.

Business History Assisted Secure Support from Arab States

An Israeli strike in the Qatari capital, which resulted in the death of a local national but not the intended targets, prompted Trump to issue an ultimatum to the prime minister. The war had to stop.

Trump had given Israel a relatively free hand in the territory. He lent American military might to Israel's campaign in Iran. But an attack on Qatar soil was a separate issue completely, moving him towards the Arab position on how best to end the war.

A number of Trump officials have informed the press that this was a turning point which galvanised the president to apply full force to get a peace deal done.

This US president's strong connections with the Gulf states are well documented. Trump has business dealings with Qatar and the UAE. The president began both his presidential terms with state visits to Saudi Arabia. Recently, Trump also stopped in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

The president's Abraham Accords, which established ties between Israel and several Muslim states, including the Emirates, was the most significant diplomatic achievement of his first term.

The time devoted in the cities of the Arabian Peninsula in recent months helped change his thinking, according to Ed Husain of the Council on Foreign Relations. Trump did not visit the country on this Middle East trip but went to the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the state where the leader received repeated calls to put a stop to the war.

Less than a month after that attack on the city, Trump was present close as the prime minister personally called the Qatari leadership to express regret. Subsequently, the Israeli leader gave approval on the president's comprehensive proposal for Gaza - one that additionally had the backing of influential Arab states in the area.

If Trump's relationship with his counterpart provided him the room to influence Israel to reach an agreement, his history with Arab rulers may have ensured their support, and assisted them convince Hamas to agree to the deal.

"One of the things that evidently occurred was that President Trump gained leverage with the Israeli government, and indirectly with the militants," notes Jon Alterman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"This was crucial. His ability to achieve this on his timing, and not succumb to the desires of the combatants has been a challenge that many earlier administrations have faced, and he seems to handle with some success."

The reality that Trump is much more popular in Israel than Netanyahu himself was an advantage that he employed to his advantage, the expert continues.

Currently Israel has committed to freeing over a thousand Palestinians imprisoned in Israeli prisons and has agreed to a partial withdrawal from the strip.

The group will free all the remaining hostages, both alive and deceased, captured during the initial October 7 assault, which resulted in the death of over 1,200 Israelis.

An end to the war, which has led to the devastation of Gaza and the deaths of over 67,000 {Palestinians|Pal