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GIFT LINK —> The Sheikh, the Mogul and the Diplomat: The Trio Who Sealed the Gaza Truce
“… What pushed the deal over the line this past week was the unlikely partnership between the envoys of America’s current and future presidents, working in tandem with the Qatari prime minister in marathon late-night meetings.
While Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump have competed for credit, the reality is that their representatives were both crucial to the final push, each using different approaches to push the Israeli leadership toward a deal while Sheikh Mohammed focused on Hamas.
…
“They aren’t natural partners, but the combination of these three individuals, and the three worlds they represent, was the only thing that was going to get this done,” said Thomas R. Nides, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel. “You needed pressure from all sides — pressure from the Arab world, pressure from Biden, and pressure from Trump.”
An array of officials and interlocutors had helped push negotiations forward for more than a year; on the American side, Mr. McGurk had helped oversee U.S. mediation efforts since the opening weeks of the war alongside other key players, including the head of the C.I.A., William J. Burns.
But in the final days, it came down to the triumvirate.
It was Mr. McGurk, a veteran diplomat long focused on the Middle East, who helped craft the deal’s complicated details nearly a year ago.
It was Mr. Witkoff, a real estate investor who plays golf with Mr. Trump, who was instrumental in persuading Israel to finally agree to the deal’s contents.
And it was Sheikh Mohammed who persuaded Hamas to make key compromises, while providing both sides with the office space in which to wrangle the final details. …”
The Sheikh, the Mogul and the Diplomat: The Trio Who Sealed the Gaza Truce
The Qatari prime minister, working with both President Biden’s envoy and President-elect Donald J. Trump’s representative, formed an unlikely partnership.“… What pushed the deal over the line this past week was the unlikely partnership between the envoys of America’s current and future presidents, working in tandem with the Qatari prime minister in marathon late-night meetings.
While Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump have competed for credit, the reality is that their representatives were both crucial to the final push, each using different approaches to push the Israeli leadership toward a deal while Sheikh Mohammed focused on Hamas.
…
“They aren’t natural partners, but the combination of these three individuals, and the three worlds they represent, was the only thing that was going to get this done,” said Thomas R. Nides, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel. “You needed pressure from all sides — pressure from the Arab world, pressure from Biden, and pressure from Trump.”
An array of officials and interlocutors had helped push negotiations forward for more than a year; on the American side, Mr. McGurk had helped oversee U.S. mediation efforts since the opening weeks of the war alongside other key players, including the head of the C.I.A., William J. Burns.
But in the final days, it came down to the triumvirate.
It was Mr. McGurk, a veteran diplomat long focused on the Middle East, who helped craft the deal’s complicated details nearly a year ago.
It was Mr. Witkoff, a real estate investor who plays golf with Mr. Trump, who was instrumental in persuading Israel to finally agree to the deal’s contents.
And it was Sheikh Mohammed who persuaded Hamas to make key compromises, while providing both sides with the office space in which to wrangle the final details. …”
