The Gaza Ceasefire: Amb. Dennis Ross on Trump’s Middle East Diplomacy with Israel and Hamas

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As the Gaza ceasefire hangs in the balance amid renewed Israeli airstrikes and Hamas violations, President Donald Trump maintains that “nothing will jeopardize” the truce his administration brokered with Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey. Yet escalating violence has raised doubts about whether this marks a genuine turning point in the Israel-Hamas conflict or just another pause in decades of war. To unpack the stakes and the strategy, The Burn Bag welcomes Ambassador Dennis Ross — the veteran U.S. diplomat who helped shape the Oslo Accords and served as a chief peace negotiator under Presidents George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama. Ross offers an insider’s analysis of how the Trump administration’s Middle East policy produced this deal, the U.S. leverage that pressured both sides, and the crucial role of Arab mediation. He discusses the challenges ahead in Phase Two of the agreement — including Hamas disarmament, Gaza reconstruction, and Palestinian Authority reform — and what history teaches about turning coercive diplomacy into sustainable peace. Drawing on lessons from Oslo and decades of experience in U.S.-Israel-Palestinian negotiations, Ross provides a clear, grounded assessment of whether this fragile ceasefire can hold — and what it means for the future of American diplomacy in the Middle East. Copyright: XLVGONZEUANVVOBP