On being sidelined – Amir Tibon in Haaretz:

‘To the extent that Donald Trump's choice of words matters, the statement he released late on Sunday night regarding the expected release of dual Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander from the hands of Hamas included several important words, and was deliberately missing one specific name.
The statement, really just a paragraph published on the U.S. president's social media accounts, described Alexander's release as a "step taken in good faith towards the United States." Trump didn't specify who exactly was showing this good faith, but there was no need to – there's only one way to read the sentence. Alexander, an American and Israeli citizen who immigrated to Israel, joined the military and was kidnapped while guarding the Gaza border on October 7, is held by Hamas, and the Palestinian terror organization has decided to release him. They're the ones getting the credit for his release.’

(…)

‘Needless to say, Trump's words must be taken with a grain of salt – as we've all seen in recent months, his positions on tariffs, Ukraine, and other global issues shift constantly. But if he sticks to his call to end the war, it will become much harder for Netanyahu to press ahead with war plans that are already deeply unpopular in Israel and lack public legitimacy. Most Israelis want the hostages brought home more than they want another drawn-out operation against Hamas that will cost many young soldiers' lives.
In order to achieve this goal, however, Trump and his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, will have to play hardball with Netanyahu and realize that he and his close confidante, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, will do everything they can to sabotage the negotiations with Hamas. Netanyahu knows that a deal to end the war in exchange for all the hostages would spell the collapse of his government, which depends on far-right parties that vehemently oppose such an agreement.’

(…)

‘Could Trump and Witkoff do the same with a broader cease-fire and hostage deal? We'll likely find out in the coming hours or days. The fate of the hostages – and the future of both Israel and Gaza – may hinge on that answer.’

Read the article here.

Israel and Netanyahu being sidelined, as the then official Afghan government once was being sidelined when Trump negotiated with the Taliban. See [here]( https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/19/us/politics/trump-biden-afghan-taliban.html(.

It didn’t end well for Afghanistan. But one could ask, what did end well for Afghanistan? Amir Tibon seems to think that Trump can save Israel. What will become of Gaza and the West Bank is unclear.

I would say that Trump could buy some time for Israel.

But het cannot make Messianic Zionism go away. He is not interested in that either.