Hamas surrendered its last living hostages, giving up the only leverage it had left in this mess they started two years ago. This wasn't some breakthrough negotiation. It was a complete capitulation, and Hamas knew it was their only shot at salvaging anything from the catastrophic war they had launched.

"When Hamas leader Khalil Al-Hayya first saw President Trump's plan for peace in Gaza, which demanded his group disarm with few concrete steps to ensure Israel would end the war, his immediate reaction was no," explains the Wall Street Journal. The proposal, which Israel rewrote and Qatari and Egyptian officials delivered, was nothing like what Hayya expected. Still reeling from Israel's recent attempt on his life, Hayya told them that Hamas wouldn't release hostages without firm guarantees to end the war. "But two days later, Hamas came back to Arab mediators with a yes. The deal hadn't changed. The pressure on Hamas had." (Screengrab image: via CBS News)

Egypt and Qatar told Hayya the deal was his last chance to end the war, according to the officials. They pressed Hamas to understand that holding the hostages was becoming a strategic liability, giving Israel a source of legitimacy to keep fighting.

The next day, joined by Turkey, they warned him that if Hamas didn't approve the plan it would be stripped of all political and diplomatic cover; Qatar and Turkey would no longer host the group's political leadership, and Egypt would stop pressing for Hamas to have a say in Gaza's postwar governance, the officials said.

It was enough to get Hamas to agree to release all its hostages in Gaza and sign on to the first part of Trump's peace deal, giving up what had been its most important bargaining chip to keep a seat at the table. While modifying its acceptance with heavy caveats that reflected its concerns about the deal, Hamas had given Trump an opportunity to declare victory and set the stage for a hostage release early this week.

The credit for forcing Hamas into this corner belongs to Trump, not Biden. Trump narrowed Hamas' options by eliminating both their diplomatic wiggle room and military alternatives through decisive American action. His administration launched strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities, completely upending the regional balance that had favored Iran and its proxies. Israel had already done serious damage by taking apart Hezbollah's leadership and financial network, which led to the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime and the emergence of a new Syrian government hostile to Iran... Subscribe for free to Breaking Christian News here

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