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Why Turkey and Qatar Should Be at the Table
(Jewish News-UK) Lt.-Col. (res.) Peter Lerner - The inclusion of Turkey and Qatar in President Trump's "Board of Peace" has triggered unease across Israel's political spectrum. Both countries have been among Israel's most vocal critics during the war, and their regional roles are viewed as outright hostile. Yet the presence of Turkey and Qatar should not be understood as a concession, but as a test. When hostages were released, it was not only through appeals to international law or public pressure, but through mediation and leverage exercised by actors who could reach those Israel could not. This is not trust. It is conditional engagement. If Qatar and Turkey have influence, the question is not whether to acknowledge it, but whether to shape how it is used. Even partial alignment on issues can alter the strategic environment in meaningful ways. For Israelis, particularly after the profound trauma of the war, the idea of engaging with governments supportive and sympathetic to Hamas is deeply uncomfortable. But diplomacy is not an exercise in moral clarity alone; it is an exercise in altering behavior. The "Board of Peace" is not a gesture of reconciliation. It is a mechanism of leverage. The writer is a former IDF foreign media spokesman.