The White House now believes it won't get a cease-fire deal in Gaza before Joe Biden leaves office. 'No deal is imminent,' a US official told The Wall Street Journal. 'I'm not sure it ever gets done.' This admission reflects a shift in the perceived feasibility of negotiating terms that could adequately address the ongoing conflict and humanitarian concerns.
For months, Biden and Kamala Harris have tried to force Israel to accept fatally flawed terms with Hamas in Gaza and, by extension, Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Democrats are motivated by fear that anti-Israel voters in the upper Midwest, especially Muslim Americans in Michigan, will abandon the party. This political calculus highlights the tension between electoral strategies and international diplomatic efforts.
The disgraceful effort, which included following the same playbook as anti-Israel mobs at the United Nations, prolonged the war and gave Hamas incentives to hold out for better deals. The strategy of pressuring Israel undercuts the nation's right to defend itself and undermines the urgency for effective conflict resolution.
Even worse, Hamas would have survived in some capacity, letting its leaders again plunder international aid, gain government control in Gaza and attack Israel again. The ramifications of a cease-fire deal favoring Hamas could greatly destabilize efforts for long-term peace in the region.
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