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The Arab Countries and Turkey Applied Real Pressure on Hamas

(Foreign Affairs) Dennis Ross - President Trump's peace plan is divided into two phases. The release of all the living hostages in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and an additional 1,750 Gazans is phase one. Phase two involves the disarmament of Hamas; Israel's further withdrawal to a buffer just inside Gazan territory, with a complete withdrawal once Gaza no longer threatens the country; the creation of a board of peace to oversee the enclave's governance and a technocratic group of Palestinians to administer it; an international stabilization force; and the actual reconstruction of and investment in the strip. It also includes genuinely reforming the Palestinian Authority. The key Arab states and Turkey have the ability to exert leverage over Hamas. And these states want good relations with Trump and for him to have a stake in their own success - which means the American president has indirect sway with Hamas, as well. The Arab countries and Turkey apparently believed it was time to end the war, and thus applied real pressure on Hamas to be responsive to Trump's plan. Turkish President Erdogan wants American F-35s. Saudi leader Mohammed bin Salman and Emirati leader Mohamed bin Zayid want increased U.S. military support. All the key Arab states (Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE) desperately want an end to a war that at best complicates their plans to develop their economies and at worst threatens their regimes. The two countries most likely to invest in reconstruction - Saudi Arabia and the UAE - share Israel's goal of disarming Hamas and making sure it does not retain control over Gaza. Leading Arab states understand that ignoring the Palestinian problem can threaten their own agendas and priorities. As a result, they are more likely to ensure that Hamas cannot control Gaza directly or indirectly and support steps on the ground to ensure it doesn't. To achieve a lasting peace, the Arab states must also insist that the Palestinian Authority carry out substantial reforms. The writer is Counselor at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a professor at Georgetown University.
2025-10-16 00:00:00
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