Can a deal with Islamist extremist regimes bring peace?

In his first days in office, President Trump has taken a number of measures to support Israel in its fight against Islamist extremism. For example, he has signed an executive order calling on the U.S. secretary of state to designate the Houthis as a terror group within the next 30 days, and reversed former President Biden’s Executive Order 14115 of Feb. 1, 2024, which sanctioned Jews living in Judea and Samaria accused of “undermining peace, security and stability in the West Bank.”

However, it remains to be seen how far the new Administration will go in confronting Islamist extremism outside its own borders. The Trump Administration’s relations with Qatar is deeply troubling. As is the new Trump Administration’s apparent willingness, to do business – political, military and economic – with leaders of regimes that seek the destruction of the Jews as a nation.

Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff played a crucial role in recent weeks in pressuring Israel to enter a deal with Hamas. That deal has failed to guarantee the release of all hostages and opened the door for Hamas to regroup and become even more deeply established in Gaza.

Qatar has played a central role in the negotiations for release of the hostages. According to Witkoff, Qatar had been “enormously helpful” in creating the agreement, and the communication skills of its prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, had been “indispensable.”

The problem is that Qatar is far from neutral. On the contrary, it has a deep interest in ensuring that Hamas is not defeated. Qatar is a major sponsor of terror in the region. As Saudi then-Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir several years ago said, “The Qataris have since the mid 1990s been sponsoring radicals, inciting people.” They are base for leadership of Muslim Brotherhood, which begot many terrorist organizaitons like Al Qaida and ISIS. They harbor and shelter terrorists. And much more.

Qatar has been a major sponsor of Hamas. It has allowed Hamas leaders to live in Qatar enjoying their billions of corrupt dollars.

Qatari media celebrated the recent deal as a victory for Hamas. A recent report issued by The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) states:

“Although Qatar helped to broker the recent Gaza ceasefire deal, its government media has been taking a flagrantly pro-Hamas and anti-Israel stance. This pro-Hamas bias is evident in headlines, articles, cartoons and social media posts by Qatari media figures that described the agreement as a “historic” and “crushing” victory for Hamas, the Palestinians, and Qatar, and as a complete humiliation for Israel that has “rubbed its nose in the dirt.” One article even compared the ceasefire deal to the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah signed between the Prophet Muhammad and the Quraysh tribe, which serves in Islamic tradition as an archetype for a temporary agreement between Muslims and their enemies, meant to be violated once the Muslims grow stronger. Another article stated that slain Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar “sowed the spirit of resistance which will continue to serve as fuel in the next rounds of fighting.”

“The deal that Israel was pressured to make with Hamas involves massive Israeli concessions to Hamas.”

The deal that Israel was pressured to make with Hamas involves massive Israeli concessions to Hamas. As Caroline Glick has explained, Phase one of the deal “is rife with dire strategic consequences for Israel in exchange for 33 hostages—including all of the women hostages. To receive the 33, Israel is required to free nearly 2,000 terrorists, hundreds of whom are convicted mass murderers. It must withdraw its forces from the cities of Gaza and from the Netzarim Corridor, permitting the mass return of Palestinians to northern Gaza. And it must permit the full resupply of Gaza, still under Hamas control. All told, Israel is paying for the 33 in a manner that risks all of its soldiers’ hard-won gains on the battlefield over the past 15 months of war.”

The reality must be faced that Islamist extremism must be defeated and eradicated from Palestinian society will there ever be real peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

It is reported that Witkoff has been tasked with opening negotiations with Iran. This is dangerous. As Melanie Philips has explained:

“The Witkoff view is that everything can be negotiated because when Trump brings his fist crashing down everyone jumps. It’s true that everyone jumps. But the Islamists play the longest game in town. Behind a series of feints, they will regroup, recalibrate and adapt to suddenly emerge stronger than ever, precisely because they have not been defeated.

Which is why Witkoff’s further reported comment, that he wants to solve tensions with Iran over nuclear weapons “diplomatically … if people are willing to adhere to their agreements,” is even more troubling as are the rumors that Trump has already reached out to “negotiate” with Iran.

In the Islamists’ world, no agreement is anything other than a stratagem to defeat their enemy—with deceit Divinely mandated as a means to advance the Islamic cause.

The Witkoff view of the world doesn’t appear to factor in that Islamists aren’t motivated by self-interest. The prospect of peace and prosperity for the region means little to people who believe that they are the warriors of God himself in purging the world of Israel, the Jews and the Christians, and conquering it for Islam.”

Glick has stated: “Oct. 7 showed us our enemy. And now that we have seen it, we cannot ignore the truth. For the nation of Israel and the State of Israel to survive, Israel must win this war no matter what the cost.”

“For the nation of Israel and the State of Israel to survive, Israel must win this war no matter what the cost.”