The Real Victors of Trump’s Peace Plan: Qatar, Turkey, and Egypt
Like many Jews around the world this week, I will be one of those rejoicing at the return of our hostages. Brothers and sisters who’ve endured unimaginable cruelty at the hands of Hamas. But the fact is that while Trump’s 21-point peace plan is a spectacular deal for Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, it is in reality a very bad deal for Israel, one that’s dangerous to Israel’s long-term security and regional influence, and by extension, a liability for the United States as well.
To resolve Gaza properly, Israel would have needed to secure several clear conditions: the eradication and disarmament of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and any other terror groups; the resettlement of Jews within Gaza to stabilize the area and normalize the presence of Jews there, not making it Judenrein. Israeli administration and control over civil matters, especially education, to reform the next generation; and the release of all hostages without surrendering leverage in the process. Israel is agreeing to release hundreds of Palestinian terrorists, most with blood on their hands. While the hostages are indeed being returned in this deal, and that’s a central aim of the war, it comes at a terrible price — nearly a thousand IDF soldiers lost so far in this war, according to official government figures, to mention nothing of the civilian costs. Those soldiers also have families who deserve to know their lives weren’t traded away for a temporary headline. To make matters worse, the mediators in this entire process are Qatar, Egypt and Turkey — three of the most aggressively anti-Israel and antisemitic states in the region, and arguably the world. These are not honest brokers; these are states that have long worked to undermine Israel politically, diplomatically, and militarily.
The big winner here is Qatar. In Trump’s 21-point plan, point number 18 explicitly states that ‘Israel agrees not to carry out future strikes in Qatar,’ and that the U.S. and the international community ‘acknowledge Doha’s important mediating role,’ according to this outlet. This is the same Qatar that hosts Hamas leadership, shelters Islamic Jihad, bankrolls the Muslim Brotherhood, influences U.S. and international universities through soft power, and spreads antisemitic propaganda around the world via Al Jazeera and their woke AJ+ channels — which stoke hatred against Israel and America across Arab streets and in Western universities. And yet, Trump and Netanyahu have agreed to a deal that effectively grants Qatar immunity. On top of that, after the Qatari emir landed in Washington and met Trump at the White House, the U.S. signed an agreement granting Qatar a new air force base on American soil proper and signed an agreement declaring that an attack on Qatar will be treated as an attack on the United States. This isn’t just a diplomatic win for Doha — it’s a massive strategic leap in their favor.
The humiliation didn’t stop there. When Israel carried out a strike on Hamas targets in Doha, Netanyahu was reportedly made to apologize to Qatar. And not just apologize — do it with Trump holding the phone on his lap as the White House itself dictated the language of the apology. Multiple reports, including Politico and Times of Israel, confirm that Qatari officials were even present to make sure the script wasn’t altered. The Prime Minister’s Office denies it, but the optics are clear. In Arab political culture, a formal apology like that isn’t a footnote; it’s a public act of submission. It is the ultimate symbolic victory for Qatar — a message to the entire region and strategic mistakes in the Middle East.
Egypt, meanwhile, will continue doing what it’s always done — nothing. It hasn’t opened its border to Gaza and won’t anytime soon, even though Gaza was once part of Egypt. It continues to maintain heavy military installations in Sinai in violation of the spirit of the peace accords, while its state media pumps out a toxic mix of antisemitic propaganda, pro-Palestinian incitement and blood libel. It’s the most populous nation in the Middle East, Israel’s neighbor and so-called “peace partner,” and it has zero incentive to change a status quo that allows it to posture without cost.
Then there’s Turkey, whose hostility toward Israel under Erdoğan has become a defining feature of its foreign policy. Turkey has harbored Hamas leaders, provided safe haven for Islamic terrorists, and deliberately undermined Israel’s security interests in Syria and the Golan. Yet Turkey is presented as a mediator in this deal — and will no doubt declare victory at home for “resolving” the Gaza conflict after sending flotilla after another all the while spewing hate. This is a regime that has spent years stoking Islamist extremism at its border, supporting Israel’s enemies, now gets diplomatic credit for cleaning up a mess it helped fuel.
In Trump’s own book, one of the central ideas he hammers on is leverage. The best deals, he says, are made from strength — leverage is everything. Netanyahu should know this. The question we are all asking ourselves is simple: how long until we have to fight the very same people who have already attacked us? Anyone being honest knows the answer. Not long.
This isn’t peace. This is appeasement with a bow on it. A deal that rewards Qatar, Egypt, Turkey and Hamas in Gaza and gives our most bitter enemies immunity, forces Israel into submission, and returns our hostages while buying nothing short of a short, fragile pause. It’s a great deal for everyone — except the people who will have to live with its consequences.
