Arab states hold key to Gaza after Israel-Hamas war

Key Middle East countries all have reasons to stabilise the region but Turkey is unflinchingly pro-Hamas and the US and Israel are already divided over the ‘day after’.

How regional countries can pool their leverage to end the Israel-Hamas war (Lina Khatib, Foreign Affairs)

On the eve of October 7, each of the “Big Five” Arab states had a different relationship with Israel. Egypt and Jordan signed peace deals with Israel decades ago; the UAE had normalised its diplomatic relations with Israel; Saudi Arabia and Israel were finalising a deal to normalise ties; Qatar kept its relationship with Israel informal while also hosting the political leadership of Hamas in Doha. 

Each Arab country’s approach to the Israel-Hamas war is primarily driven by concerns over its own particular priorities. Although these separate efforts are promoting the interests of each country, much more could be accomplished if the Big Five pooled their resources, focusing on coordination rather than perfect alignment. The goal should be to jumpstart negotiations involving these countries plus Hamas, Israel, and the U.S.

The Big Five would be actively involved, but with a more equitable balance of power for themselves vis-à-vis Israel and the U.S. They should insist on relaunching the peace process as a precondition for Israel’s normalisation with Saudi Arabia so as to preserve Saudi Arabia’s credibility and status. And they should insist on a political rather than a military solution for containing Hamas. This means implementing the Saudi-led proposal that came out of the joint Arab League–Organisation of Islamic Cooperation summit calling for the establishment of a Palestinian political coalition under the umbrella of the Palestine Liberation Organization. But this can only succeed if the U.S. agrees to cooperate with Saudi Arabia and the UAE on a long-term strategy for containing Iran’s regional interventions.