Watch carefully. The IDF continues to bomb and shoot and set fire to Gaza under the pretext of "defensive actions", but the IDF is no longer calling the shots. This is now an acknowledged political issue. Trump is speaking overtly and directly with Hamas. Israel awaits instructions. Israel can comply and negotiate or it can go rogue on DC. There is little reason to assume Israel will go it alone.
I have written here in the past that Netanyahu has much to gain from making some sort of deal. He and the settlers have never trusted each other. Making a deal, he can hope to appear as the grownup in the room. He fought the inevitable war and signed an inevitable deal. None of his competitors would abstain in a parliamentary vote on such a deal. Even if the settlers walk away, he will have all the support he needs.
He will, of course, make it clear that Israel reserves (because it has) the right to fight whenever it wants. I'm not sure that is true at this stage. One of the main traits of genocidal Israel is its denial of the passage of time and its effects. That has not changed. Israel remains genocidal. However, Israel's bluff has been resoundingly called. It cannot continue the genocide alone. This morning, it is more alone than it has ever been.
As for "the deal", any longer-term hopes it may carry depend on the recognition of Palestinian sovereignty to determine their own political future. Hamas has presented Trump and the mediators with a reply that addresses this issue precisely. In doing so, Hamas has done much to establish itself as indispensible to any process. This demonstrates yet again that Israel's war goals ("destroy Hamas" and "return the hostages") were only gateways to genocide and ethnic cleansing.
If anything, I see myself as a “witness.” I’d also be pleased, if you’d call me an “interpreter.” WIM WENDERS
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