Did Donald Trump deliver the Gaza ceasefire that Joe Biden couldn’t?

After many long months of inconclusive talks, a ceasefire deal between the Israeli government and Hamas appears to have finally been reached just as Biden is set to leave office — and Trump is set to take credit.

Biden’s team of course would point out that they spent many months engaged in painstaking diplomacy to deliver this outcome. The deal itself (which is still awaiting final approval from the Israeli government) resembles a proposal crafted by officials from the US, Egypt, and Qatar and announced by Biden in May.

However, there indeed seems to be widespread agreement among diplomats and officials involved that Trump-related factors were quite important in finally spurring the deal to come together — though there are some dueling narratives about exactly why.

Trump intervened in two main ways.

First, in early December, he made a public demand that the hostages be released before his inauguration — and that, if they weren’t, there would be “ALL HELL TO PAY in the Middle East.” He did not clarify what that meant, but this effectively set a deadline: Trump wanted a deal by January 20.

Second, in recent days, Trump’s team — most notably incoming Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff — became involved in the process directly, pressuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to make concessions and agree to a deal.

Left critics of Biden’s Israel policy have responded by arguing that Trump’s........

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