Peloni: Witkoff suggests that the deal he pushed thru was the product of Trump’s Peace Thru Strength, when in fact, the peace he chose to push thru was one which he admits he never tried to influence, having simply used the template supplied by the previous administration which Trump was supposedly critical. By doing so, he abandoned the support which Trump promised to Israel while campaigning and complaining that America’s ally had been treated so badly by Biden, only to have his own Middle East Envoy force the Biden peace proposal forward. This was not done with the interests of Israel in mind, nor was it achieved using the premise of Peace Thru Strength, which would have used the threat of US force against those parties who hold leverage over the Hamas terrorists to dislodge the terrorists from power and release the hostages which are being held. Doing so would have required Witkoff to pressure, not Israel, but Qatar, over which Witkoff continues to praise for their communication skills instead of condemning for their complicity in harboring and funding the Hamas terrorists who slaughtered and kidnapped their victims on October 7.
In just one interview, Trump’s Middle East envoy manages to:
??Express a willingness to reach “understandings about everything” with Hamas
??Admits that he and Trump’s team didn’t even try to get any additional hostages out
??Fawns over the Qatari leadership (again) pic.twitter.com/j84wLPk37u
— Eitan Fischberger (@EFischberger) January 22, 2025
Trump hasn’t lifted the arms embargo.
Financial Times is reporting that Wikoff will be handling the Iran file….
In fact, Witkoff speaks as if the very sensitive subject on which he was negotiating had no value outside of getting the deal done. What is more, while he claims that the terms had already been agreed upon, the deal which he pushed thru was far different than that which was agreed to. Point in fact, the deal as stated back in May had no provision for Israel to surrender the Philadelphi corridor which is part of the current arrangement.
I could not be more outraged over what this deal portends for the region, and as I have noted previously, the manner in which Witkoff condescended to Israel while praising the efforts of Qatar, which is nothing less than a central hub for terror throughout the region, was even more dispiriting for Trump’s coming term.
Witkoff should be terminated by Trump, not celebrated, and both the US and Israel should withdraw from this deal as soon as possible. Peace by Surrender will only bring greater tragedy, and that is exactly what this deal represents, no matter how Witkoff, Trump or Bibi might like to describe it differently.
Witkoff doesn’t sound as if ge ever read the Art of the Deal or even met DJT. He sounds as if he fell on his mouth.
This video says it all
https://x.com/stateofapod/status/1882141735716827266