د. سنية الحسيني

The Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani defense agreement, signed in Mecca, is presented as a potentially important shift in Middle Eastern security and deterrence. The three U.S.-aligned states are portrayed as seeking greater autonomy in defense procurement, security decision-making and alliances while responding to threats linked to Israel, Iran-related tensions, U.S. policy, and regional rivalries. The agreement’s effectiveness will depend on implementing its collective-security clause, under which an attack on one member would be treated as an attack on all. Its possible expansion to countries including Egypt and Qatar could challenge the United States’ longstanding role in defining regional power balances and reflect a broader movement toward a more multipolar international order.

The article questions whether Donald Trump can compel Israel to implement the latest Gaza agreement and advance the second phase of his 20-point peace plan. It argues that disagreements between Washington, Israel and the Palestinian implementation mechanisms have made the arrangement fragile, particularly over Hamas’s disarmament, Israel’s withdrawal to the designated line, and the composition of the monitoring committee. Comparisons with the Lebanon ceasefire and U.S.-Iran negotiations suggest that Washington tends to pressure non-Israeli parties, tolerate Israeli violations and intervene forcefully only when Israeli actions threaten broader U.S. regional objectives. The author concludes that the United States appears more focused on preserving limited truces and extracting concessions than on ending conflict, leaving Gaza and Lebanon vulnerable to continued violence under agreements that fall short of genuine peace.

Settler attacks against Palestinians in the West Bank have intensified in scale and lethality, with four Palestinians killed in the latest incident in the village of Tal and Israeli casualties also reported. The article argues that Israeli forces frequently tolerate or support the attacks, while the government expands settlements, restricts Palestinian movement, increases military deployments and extends Israeli administrative authority into areas nominally under Palestinian control. It links these measures to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s long-term goal of consolidating Israeli control over the West Bank and possibly to electoral considerations ahead of Israel’s October elections. Road closures, hundreds of checkpoints, withheld Palestinian tax revenues, banking restrictions and the expansion of settlement land purchases are described as further weakening the Palestinian Authority. Israel is portrayed as divided between those seeking the Authority’s collapse and those preferring a weak authority that limits Israel’s obligations. The article concludes that Palestinian reliance on steadfastness alone is insufficient and calls for a strategy of active resistance and greater political and popular pressure.