In Middle East, Trump marginalizes Israel without helping Gaza

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/05/16/trump-middle-east-israel-gaza/

As President Donald Trump’s Middle East sojourn drew to a close, a much-vaunted “grand bargain” bringing peace to a restive region was nowhere in sight.

In a trip that seemed more about business than geopolitics, Trump still paid lip service to his hopes for peace. He extended a hand to Iran, gesturing to potential future talks over its nuclear program. He announced a truce with Yemen’s Houthi rebels after authorizing a $1 billion bombing campaign that hasn’t dented the Houthis’ capacity to target Israel or Red Sea shipping. To the surprise of even some U.S. officials, he announced the cessation of sanctions on Syria, a critical move to boost the country’s fledgling, transitional regime. And he decried a legacy of U.S. interventionism in the region.

The signals he sent caused consternation in Israel. Ahead of Trump’s trip, Israeli media and officials were already pointing to the way Trump has bypassed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a right-wing leader closely allied to the U.S. president who received numerous political gifts from the White House in Trump’s first term.