I begin today with a disclaimer: We may share a last name, but I am not related, even remotely, to Jared Kushner – for which fact I remain grateful.
These days, Jared is back in the political limelight, as he hasn’t been since the first term of his father-in-law, President Donald Trump. And so now I find readers asking me about a connection.
Jared is a member of a negotiating [bulldozing?] team, along with Steve Witkoff, who was not involved during Trump’s first term.
Those who have read my earlier post about their interview with 60 Minutes will understand very well my displeasure with these two. https://arlenefromisrael.info/intolerable/
They came to Israel on Monday to discuss the next stage of Trump’s 20-point plan with Prime Minister Netanyahu.
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Donald Trump is often referred to as the most pro-Israel president there has ever been, and indeed this is so. We greatly appreciate much that he has done.
However…as I have consistently pointed out, the fact that he has supported us in numerous ways does not mean we can always expect his concerns to dovetail with ours, nor is it necessarily the case that what he chooses to pursue is in Israel’s best interest either diplomatically or in terms of our security. In several instances, quite the contrary is true.
Assuming that he even fully perceives the ways in which some of his policies diverge from our security and diplomatic interests, there is little evidence that this would be of importance to him; he moves forward projecting supreme confidence in the rightness of his decisions. This is greatly unsettling, particularly as Trump seeks to involve Israel in his plans.
Bibi Netanyahu, a skilled diplomat, walks a tightrope.
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Trump has a noble vision: he wants to bring peace to the Middle East. (And, not coincidentally, to be recognized as the man who achieved this previously unattainable goal.)
In order to achieve his goal, he is inordinately predisposed to striking “deals.”
There are several problems with his approach. One is that he is not a man of patience – he wants matters to come together NOW. While movement forward is often imperative, acting too quickly may mean that insufficient time has been allocated to weighing all ramifications. This can be a recipe for confusion if not disaster down the road.
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Another problem – and this is key – is that he is unwilling to accept the fact that there are evil forces in the world that must be taken down and rendered incapable of inflicting harm. They cannot be dealt with successfully via negotiations. This applies both to Hamas and Iran – and there are serious implications for Israel with regard to both.
Trump erred in sanctioning face-to-face negotiations between his team and Hamas, thereby elevating its status to that of a legitimate player. (Here was an instance of moving too quickly – acting to achieve a specific direct goal without considering broader diplomatic implications.) The rule should have been maintained that there are no direct negotiations with a terrorist entity.
Most significantly, we are caught now in a shaky and unsustainable “ceasefire” in Gaza that prevents us from doing what must be done to defeat Hamas militarily.
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The essence of the matter is a Western inability to grasp the jihadist’s manipulative mindset and devious negotiating style.
Trump, at heart a real estate businessman, believes that everyone has a price. That a deal can always be struck with the right terms. But jihadists hold fast to an implacable ideology, fueled by religious belief, that entertains no compromise – although they will temporarily pretend otherwise if it suits their purpose (As Arafat did with the Oslo Accords). Ultimately they are out to destroy Israel and weaken the West.
Trump’s failing is that he does not perceive the pretense.
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The president is champing at the bit to move to the second stage of his plan because of concern that the ceasefire he cobbled together, which is exceedingly shaky, might fall apart before the second stage is even reached. We understand this.
The first stage has not yet reached completion. This is with regard, among other matters, to four additional deceased hostages that Hamas is obligated to return to Israel. Yet the Trump team has been moving forward.
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The administration has in the last several days been drafting a resolution to be approved by the UN Security Council. It would not be a formal mandate for action but, rather, is intended to lend legitimacy to an International Security Force (ISF) that would be an “enforcement force and not a peacekeeping force.”
The difference between the two forces, as I have seen it explained by the King of Jordan and others, is that the “enforcement force” would make certain that those responsible for keeping the peace – the “peacekeeping force” – were doing their job.
My immediate thought was that this “enforcement force” would be similar to UNIFIL – the international force stationed in Lebanon to make certain that weapons were not being smuggled to Hezbollah from Syria. UNIFIL troops had no mandate to challenge weapon smugglers or confiscate weapons. They were certainly not prepared to risk their lives facing down Hezbollah terrorists. They were there to see what was happening, and report on it. One commander actually explained that they only operated during the day, because it was too dangerous at night. In the end, tens of thousands of weapons were smuggled in.
According to the resolution being advanced now, a Board of Peace would provide transitional governance and “stabilize the security environment in Gaza by ensuring the process of demilitarizing the Gaza Strip.”
https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2025/11/07/us-pushes-for-un-resolution-on-gaza-to-support-peace-plan/
But wait! The questions linger unanswered. How would the process of demilitarizing Gaza be done, and by whom? There is no indication as to who would serve in that “peacekeeping force.”
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At the same time, the US is also advancing plans to establish a large military base in the Gaza envelope – that is, inside of Israel in the area adjacent to Gaza – at a cost of half a billion dollars. It would be utilized to house the thousands of members of international forces that would enforce the ceasefire.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/417620
This vision does not sit easily upon me.
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Of particular concern to Trump this past week has been the issue of what happens to some 200 Hamas terrorists who are caught in tunnels in the Rafah area of Gaza that are on the Israeli side of that yellow line and under Israeli control.
They seek safe passage so that they might rejoin their fellow terrorists on the other side of the yellow line. For days, proposals on how to handle this shifted with head-spinning rapidity. At one point Netanyahu said they might be allowed to leave if they surrendered their weapons, but finally he seemed to favor arresting them (they are terrorists after all) but not killing them.
It’s a big question: WHY should we even consider allowing these terrorists to rejoin their fellow terrorists, who are regrouping during the “ceasefire” with hopes of hitting us again before long?
And here’s the kicker: Trump was in favor of our releasing them and was pushing Israel on this.
Writing in today’s Jpost, Pesach Wolicki had an answer as to why Trump would do this (emphasis added):
“…Washington wants the appearance that the Trump peace plan is working. The visual of Hamas fighters laying down arms and being amnestied would feed the narrative that a peaceful disarming of the terrorist group is actually possible.”
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-873516
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This issue was one of the matters that brought Witkoff and Kushner to Israel this week. It was felt that a rapid resolution was imperative.
And now a potential solution has been announced:
“The framework under consideration includes the surrender of the Hamas operatives trapped in the tunnel, the handing over of their weapons, a pardon, and exile to a third country, with the option of returning to Gaza after several years.”
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/417662
The version of the solution presented here does not include a proviso, ludicrous on the face of it, which I saw elsewhere, that the terrorists would “renounce terrorism”. This does not necessarily mean, however, that there is no intent to require such a renunciation prior to a pardon. That would play well with the Trump version of matters.
And while this is not mentioned here either, there was also a proviso from Israel that this could not happen until we received all remaining deceased hostages.
Continuing…
“However, sources involved in the talks noted that, so far, no third country has agreed to accept the Hamas operatives, making it difficult to implement the arrangement.” At present there is no solution (or none acceptable to the Americans).
By all means, my friends, feel free to laugh long and loud.
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Yesterday I saw not one, but two, sources indicating that high level officials (unnamed) in the US administration are highly dubious about the possibility of Trump’s peace plan being successful. One source from Srugim was originally in Hebrew. A brief section in translation:
“The ceasefire in the Gaza Strip is faltering, the Americans are losing interest and momentum, and no progress is seen in the foreseeable future…
“…many think that the chance of progressing beyond Phase 1 of releasing the hostages is ‘zero.’
“…In addition, those around Trump also express great doubt about the chances of truly driving change on the ground: ‘There is no clear plan to move from phase A to phase B…’”
Another source, less detailed but echoing the same sentiments, was Politico.
None of this will come as a surprise to those of us who have been watching. It is simply a matter of waiting to see what comes next and when Israel – the only country ready and able to do so – will be able to assume the role of a peacekeeping force.
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In a coming posting I want to look at the way in which Trump is making similar mistakes – attempting to make deals with jihadists who have presumably moderated.
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Hadar Goldin was laid to rest yesterday, in a military cemetery in Kfar Saba. Thousands came to honor Hadar.
See a video from the funeral here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ScEgE5OVdg
“Hadar Goldin’s mother, Leah Goldin, eulogized him with a choked voice and said: ‘Thank you to everyone who brought Hadar back to us for burial in Israel…[addressing Hadar] We waited for you 11 years, that’s a very long time…I always loved you Hadar, rest in peace.’” (Emphasis added)
https://www.ynetnews.com/article/qamb8qdu8
The tunnel in which Hadar had been kept has been destroyed.
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Please, pray for all of Am Yisrael, with special prayers for the healing of the returned hostages, return of all deceased hostages, and our final victory over Hamas.
©Arlene Kushner. This material is produced by independent journalist Arlene Kushner. Permission is granted for it to be reproduced only with proper attribution.
