In triumph, Netanyahu sets out the terms for peace – at the point of a spear

Donald Trump was acclaimed a hero for bringing peace to the Middle East.

But the man who stood with him, Benjamin Netanyahu, set out the terms of that peace – and they were all about being ready for war.

One looked almost serene in victory. The other sounded triumphant.

The American president soaked up the adulation in a momentous day that cemented a ceasefire in Gaza with the release of hostages cruelly held for two years.

“My personality, actually, is all about stopping wars,” he said in Israel. Hours later, in Egypt, he praised the world leaders gathered around him. He spoke as if a lasting peace was assured.

There was so much attention on Trump that it was easy to overlook the steel in the message from Netanyahu.

The Israeli Prime Minister also set out a vision for peace, but it looked like peace at the point of a spear.

He called it peace through strength. He did not utter the words, but he echoed the ancient saying: if you would have peace, prepare for war.

Netanyahu spoke as if nothing was assured about this peace.

He exulted in the destruction of Israel’s enemies. In his address to the Knesset, moments before Trump spoke, he gloried in the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities. “You really hammered them,” he told Trump.

Netanyahu listed the Hamas commanders who had been eliminated: “They’re all gone!”

He likened those who fought for Israel to the heroes of the Bible. He said Hamas “caved in” to the ceasefire. He claimed Israel had achieved all its objectives in the war.

This was exaggeration in victory. Israel has shown its strength against Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iran. But it has recovered the hostages and gained a ceasefire by agreeing to release almost 2000 Palestinian prisoners. The fact is that Trump leant on Netanyahu to give ground.

Another fact is that some of the crowds in Israel on the weekend booed when Netanyahu’s name was mentioned. He needed to play up the victory to counter their doubts about his judgement.

Even so, there was a fundamental truth to Netanyahu’s address. Israel won the war. Yes, it did so at a shocking cost in death and destruction in Gaza. It lost international support as the devastation continued.

But if there is to be a peace, it can only come if the avowed enemies of Israel accept its right to exist.

“The Jewish people have risen from the ashes time and again,” Netanyahu said.

“But when we formed the State of Israel and the army of Israel, we pledged never again – never again – would we be defenceless against our enemies. And that resolute strength not only assures our survival, it assures our future, it assures peace.

“We have paid a high price for this war. But our enemies now understand just how powerful and just how determined Israel is.

“They understand that attacking Israel on October 7th was a catastrophic mistake. They understand that Israel is strong and that Israel is here to stay.”

Trump was confident that war would end because he said it would end, but Netanyahu was crystal clear about the only way it might happen.

The fact that the International Criminal Court wants Netanyahu to face charges over war crimes, including accusations that he used starvation as a method of war, will not sway him. After all, the same court wants Hamas leaders to face charges over war crimes, and that has not swayed them or their supporters.

The message from Netanyahu was that the enemies of Israel had to accept that they lost, and should never again invite catastrophe.

Hamas will reject those terms, of course, but we do not know whether this will guarantee more conflict. It is too early to judge if Hamas has the capacity in its own ranks and support among the people of Gaza to threaten a longer peace.

We do not know if the longing for vengeance will exceed the desire for peace, so we cannot tell if Hamas will be punished for its failure or rewarded for promising a future victory.

There seemed to be only one check on Netanyahu, and it was the man sitting beside him as he addressed the Knesset. The Israeli prime minister called Trump indispensable, determined and focused in helping Israel.

This was another fundamental truth. If there is war, Trump is probably the only leader outside Israel who might convince Netanyahu to stop.

Netanyahu was unashamedly triumphant. Those who do not like him will recoil from his message, but they should not ignore it. His words will shape the terms of the peace – if it comes.

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