The Israeli-Hamas War: Security Threats to Israel, Saudi-Israeli Relations, and a Palestinian Path to a Free State

A deputy national security adviser to Donald Trump during his first term, and an analyst at The Heritage Foundation, said the U.S. president will find it difficult to fulfill the Saudi demand.

Netanyahu faces another Gordian knot because of the fact that he wants to establish Saudi-Israeli relations but Riyadh wants a pathway to a Palestinian state. After the deadly attack on Israel by Hamas in October of this year, most of the Israeli parliament oppose that idea even more. They see a Palestinian state as a security threat to Israel and an undeserved reward to Palestinians after the attack.

Donald Trump said that neighboring countries should agree to take in Gazans because of the destruction caused by the Israel-Hamas war. Trump has specifically named Egypt and Jordan, which have rejected the plan. Trump insists they’ll eventually agree to it.

Siegel was freed by Hamas on Saturday and friends and family cheered. Many at the gathering were worried about the war restarting before all the hostages were freed. Steve Burnstein believes the U.S. exerts pressure on other countries.

“We just hope and pray that the Americans do everything that they can to ensure that the Israeli government has the strength and the courage to make sure that we reach the second stage of the deal,” he said to NPR.

That same evening, a few thousand Tel Aviv residents showed up at one of the weekly rallies celebrating the return of three Israeli hostages and demanding the government work toward returning all the remaining hostages still held by Hamas, many of whom are believed dead.

The U.S.-Israeli War at the Crossroads: Netanyahu’s First Call to Arms, Israeli Defense Reform, and the Status of the Middle East

At the rally, Shelly, who only gave her first name to speak frankly about U.S.-Israeli politics without repercussion, said she believes only “Trump can push Netanyahu to seal another deal.”

Netanyahu didn’t want a deal before. And he’s doing it because Trump said so,” she said. I hope Trump will tell him that we’re bringing everyone. Every single hostage home.”

Another central question to resolve: whether Israel will launch a military strike on a weakened Iran, shorn after a year of intense fighting against its proxies.

The first foreign leader to meet with Trump since he was inaugurated is Netanyahu, and Trump described his bond with Netanyahu as “unbreakable”.

The second phase of a ceasefire deal would end the war and allow for the return of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Also on the table is a bargain that could reshape the Middle East for decades to come: a deal to open Israel’s diplomatic relations with Saudi Arabia.

“As long as he continues the war, Israel does not go to election,” Talshir says. “Israel does not have a public investigation of what happened on Oct. 7. And Netanyahu remains in power.”

According to Talshir, a book about the Netanyahu era of Israel, Netanyahu might be interested in returning to war because he wants to keep his coalition and stay in office.

Despite Israel pounding Gaza for over a year, the recent hostage releases have seen dozens of masked Hamas fighters parade Israelis on makeshift stages before freeing them.

The main challenge Netanyahu faces is from Bezalel Smotrich, Israel’s finance minister, who wants the war to continue till Hamas is destroyed — a task Israeli defense analysts believe is unrealistic, so long as Hamas continues to hold Israeli hostages and Israel does not endorse a viable alternative leadership for Gaza.

The ally of the Israeli leader threatened to bring down the government if Israel goes down that path and does not resume the war in Gaza.

Gayil Talshir, a professor of politics at Hebrew University, says that the meeting on Tuesday is important for Netanyahu’s survival as the leader of Israel. “I think Netanyahu wants exactly what Trump offers him, but I think his own coalition has quite a different vision.”

If the two leaders take this idea seriously in their meeting, and, worse, if the idea comes to fruition, it will almost certainly boost hostility to Israel in the region and kick any prospects of U.S.-sponsored Israeli-Saudi normalization — a goal Mr. Trump enthusiastically seeks to pursue — deep into the long grass. The Saudi leadership joined many others in designating Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide and is now more powerful in pushing for the creation of a Palestinian state. A large-scale population transfer of Palestinians would likely end a three-way U.S.- Israel-Saudi agreement for the foreseeable future, because of being morally reprehensible.

It is hard to exaggerate the traumatic resonance of displacement and population transfer in collective Palestinian memory. This history helps explain the Palestinian determination to remain in the newly devastated territory and the widespread outcry to this relocation proposal and its long-term radicalizing potential.

“We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site,” Trump said as Netanyahu looked on. “Level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings. Level it out, create an economic development.”

Trump did not share details how he anticipated the U.S. would take control of the strip, but during the press conference, also didn’t rule out sending U.S. troops to support the reconstruction.

The administration is focused on completing Phase 1 and returning hostages, including the dead, according to officials. They say Phase 2 would end the war with Hamas and return all remaining Israeli hostages from captivity in Gaza.

It is physically impossible to rebuild the area in five years, said Trump’s envoy. There was damage to Gaza during the war, which made a 10- to 15-year time frame more likely.

“You have to learn from history. There can be no going back to the same things; history has to stop repeating itself. We have an opportunity to do something that could be phenomenal,” Trump said.

Two executive orders were signed by Trump on Tuesday. One puts a lot of pressure on Iran. Trump said he was “torn” about signing it.

“I’m signing this and I’m unhappy to do it but I have not so much choice because we have to be strong and firm,” Trump said, and added that he hopes he doesn’t have to use it.

“To me, it’s very simple. Trump said that Iran does not have a nuclear weapon. He said the U.S. has the right to block Iran’s oil sales.

Cutoff of the United Nations Relief Works Agency due to the US Pullout from the Human Rights Council and the U.S. withdrawal of its humanitarian stance

The United Nations Relief Works Agency, which provides aid to Palestinians, was cut off by the other order due to the US pulling out of the Human Rights Council.