Doha and Ankara would like to see the jihadists stay in power because they ideologically support the terror group, but that may clash with their ambition to maintain a close relationship with Trump
October 23, 2025 15:37
Many are breathing a massive sigh of relief now that the last of the living hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7, 2023 has been returned home. Once the remains of all the captives who have been killed are also back in Israel, the first phase of the peace deal will be completed.
The next step in the plan – and also its biggest challenge, as seen in the Gaza attack that killed two Israeli soldiers and prompted a wave of airstrikes – is getting Hamas to disarm and cede control of the Gaza Strip to a transitional Palestinian technocratic government supported by the International Stabilisation Force, a yet-to-be-established international body.
US President Donald Trump has succeeded in gathering together an influential group of mediators, including Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, to pressure Hamas into implementing the rest of the peace agreement. But it is not yet clear if the US partners in this deal will have the incentive or the wherewithal to push Hamas to give up its weapons, its terror infrastructure or its status as the ruler of Gaza.
Qatar and Turkey have conflicting interests: on the one hand, they would like to see Hamas stay in power because they ideologically support the terror group, but at the moment their overriding interest seems to be maintaining a close relationship with Trump by delivering Hamas – in anticipation of rewards from Washington. In addition, they may be motivated by the prospect of maintaining some influence over Hamas during the reconstruction of Gaza if they continue to support the US in urging disarmament.
As for Western countries, many have not been shy about making their voices heard on the Gaza conflict. Several have recently declared their recognition of Palestinian statehood – a move that rewards and emboldens Hamas, even as the jihadis bring disaster on the very civilians they claim to represent.
Now that there is a full-blown peace plan waiting to be implemented, the world must pressure Hamas to move to the next stage as soon as possible once the remains of the murdered hostages are returned. Only then can deradicalisation, normality and reconstruction begin in earnest and the civilians of Gaza finally live free of terrorist rule – and public executions.
Though Trump has said Israeli forces could return to the streets of Gaza if Hamas refuses to uphold its end of the deal, the resumption of hostilities is not an ideal outcome for any of the parties. But the disarmament of Hamas is likely to take time.
First Hamas needs to agree to it in principle, and then the requirements and procedures of disarmament must be spelt out. Trump’s plan specifies that once the International Stabilisation Force has been established, that body will be responsible for internal security, meaning that Hamas cannot get away with policing Gaza as a way to justify holding on to its weapons.
Israel has been fighting Hamas for two years to deliver the message that the 2023 massacre was not only terrible for the Israeli population but also terrible for Hamas, because it has been so weakened by the war it set off. And so if the world does not pressure Hamas to disarm, Israel will likely feel the need to step in and forcibly disarm Hamas to prevent the terrorists from attempting another attack that could kill thousands more, and to ensure October 7 is remembered in Palestinian history as a failure.
If the peace plan does get fully implemented, despite the obstacles, the Palestinians of Gaza will likely be the ones deriving the greatest benefit: living in a rebuilt land free from the rule of terrorists, which may help create what the peace plan calls “the conditions [that] may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.”
Israel will, of course, also benefit from peaceful borders, and the impact could ripple even further outward, building towards broader stability in the Middle East. That could encompass the Arab world, from Oman and Qatar to Syria and, perhaps, Lebanon once Hezbollah is disarmed, as well as to countries in the broader Muslim world, such as Indonesia. A new Middle East may well be on the horizon – once the world pressures Hamas to lay down its weapons and let Gaza be rebuilt in peace.
Yossi Kuperwasser, a retired Israeli brigadier general, leads the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security. He is a former head of the research division of the Israel Defense Forces’ military intelligence directorate and director-general of the Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs
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