President Donald Trump's peace plan for the Israel-Hamas war got a dose of cold reality on Monday night from the conservative Wall Street Journal.
The two sides formally implemented a ceasefire deal brokered in large part by Trump, with the support of Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey. As part of the deal, all living Israeli hostages held since October 2023 have been released by Hamas. Israel, meanwhile, freed nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
The Journal's Andrew Dowell reported Monday night that Trump wants to "quickly pivot" from the ceasefire to what he called a "thornier" issue — broader peace in the Middle East. The report said Trump is making a "big gamble" that after two years of war, both sides are ready to give peace a try.
"It is a gamble that—much like the unorthodox diplomacy Trump used to secure the release of the hostages held by Hamas—flouts traditional thinking about the intractable problems at the heart of the region’s problems, and it risks inflaming tensions between Israel, Palestinians and the broader Muslim world," warned Dowell.
But the Middle East, noted the report, is a "graveyard for ambitious plans." Dowell pointed to George W. Bush's administration, which overthrew Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in the hopes the country would embrace democracy.
"They ended up spreading a devastating insurgency that took years to put down," the report noted.
Additionally, the Biden administration's plan to end the war never took flight, and the 1993 Oslo Accords that plotted a path to peace collapsed.
"Already cracks are showing in the second stage of Trump’s peace plan," warned Dowell.
Case in point: Trump's Egypt summit on Monday featured nearly two dozen countries supporting the plan from Europe and the Middle East. But one foreign official was conspicuously absent: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who wasn't asked to attend.
"Trump helped secure an invitation, but the Israeli leader ultimately turned it down, citing the Simchat Torah holiday that began Monday night," the report said.
"A number of Middle East countries had balked at his presence, people familiar with the matter said. Israel’s devastation of the Gaza Strip has made it difficult politically to appear with Netanyahu, and the past year’s actions have left Arab states wary of the power of Israel’s military and intelligence services—and the country’s willingness to use it."
The summit ended with a "vague" peace deal signed by Turkey, Egypt and Qatar, according to a draft of the agreement reviewed by the Journal.