On Wednesday, the Palestinian Authority president met with Donald Trump, after which the two leaders delivered public statements to assembled reporters. David Horovitz comments on the proceedings:

The U.S. president, who was expected to be far tougher on the Palestinians than his predecessor Barack Obama, could hardly have been more warm, gracious, and welcoming. . . . President Trump . . . made clear throughout his brief remarks that he regards Abbas as a central, viable part of the solution [to the Israel-Palestinian conflict].

He hailed Abbas for signing the Oslo Accords on the White House lawn 24 years ago, recalling that his guest was a signatory to that first agreement and hoping that the PA president would, in due course, be able to sign a final, permanent accord.

Clearly placing Abbas on the good side of the battle against terrorism, he noted that Abbas has spoken out against terror, and he enthused about what he called the “unbelievable,” “beautiful” relationship that Abbas’s security forces have with their Israeli counterparts.

He certainly warned that there could be “no lasting peace” unless the Palestinian leadership spoke in a unified voice against violence and hatred. But that was the mildest of upbraids; there was no direct accusation that Abbas has been doing anything wrong. . . . Trump made clear that he wants a peace deal, and will do everything in his power to broker one, but won’t impose it. Abbas could not have looked more content.

For some time, opponents of U.S support for Israel have been urging the White House to end the war in Gaza, or simply calling for a ceasefire. Douglas Feith and Lewis Libby consider what such a result would actually entail:

Ending the war immediately would allow Hamas to survive and retain military and governing power. Leaving it in the area containing the Sinai-Gaza smuggling routes would ensure that Hamas can rearm. This is why Hamas leaders now plead for a ceasefire. A ceasefire will provide some relief for Gazans today, but a prolonged ceasefire will preserve Hamas’s bloody oppression of Gaza and make future wars with Israel inevitable.

For most Gazans, even when there is no hot war, Hamas’s dictatorship is a nightmarish tyranny. Hamas rule features the torture and murder of regime opponents, official corruption, extremist indoctrination of children, and misery for the population in general. Hamas diverts foreign aid and other resources from proper uses; instead of improving life for the mass of the people, it uses the funds to fight against Palestinians and Israelis.

Moreover, a Hamas-affiliated website warned Gazans last month against cooperating with Israel in securing and delivering the truckloads of aid flowing into the Strip. It promised to deal with those who do with “an iron fist.” In other words, if Hamas remains in power, it will begin torturing, imprisoning, or murdering those it deems collaborators the moment the war ends. Thereafter, Hamas will begin planning its next attack on Israel:

Hamas’s goals are to overshadow the Palestinian Authority, win control of the West Bank, and establish Hamas leadership over the Palestinian revolution. Hamas’s ultimate aim is to spark a regional war to obliterate Israel and, as Hamas leaders steadfastly maintain, fulfill a Quranic vision of killing all Jews.

Hamas planned for corpses of Palestinian babies and mothers to serve as the mainspring of its October 7 war plan. Hamas calculated it could survive a war against a superior Israeli force and energize enemies of Israel around the world. The key to both aims was arranging for grievous Palestinian civilian losses. . . . That element of Hamas’s war plan is working impressively.