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At first, Israel's aerial attack on the Hamas militant delegation in Qatar seemed like yet another intensification that pushed the prospect of peace out of reach.

The attack on 9 September breached the territorial integrity of an American ally and risked expanding the hostilities into a broader regional conflict.

Negotiations appeared to be in ruins.

Instead, it turned out to be a key moment that culminated in a agreement, declared by Donald Trump, to free all remaining hostages.

That represents a objective that he, and President Joe Biden before him, had pursued for almost 24 months.

This marks just the initial phase towards a lasting resolution, and the details of disarming Hamas, administering Gaza and complete Israeli pullout remain to be worked out.

Yet if this deal stands, it could be Trump's signature achievement of his second term - one that eluded Joe Biden and his diplomatic team.

The president's unique style and key alliances with the Israeli government and the Middle Eastern nations appear to have played a role in this breakthrough.

However, as with most diplomatic achievements, there were also factors at play beyond the control of either man.

Strong Ties Which Biden Never Had

Publicly, Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are consistently friendly.

Trump likes to say that the nation has no greater ally, and Netanyahu has described him as the country's "most supportive friend in the White House". And these warm words have been matched by deeds.

During his initial time in office, Trump moved the American diplomatic mission in the country from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and discarded a long-held US position that Jewish communities in the occupied territories are against international law, the view under global norms.

When the Israeli military began its bombing campaign against Iran in the summer, the US leader ordered US bombers to target the nation's nuclear enrichment facilities with its most powerful conventional bombs.

Those public demonstrations of backing may have allowed Trump the leeway to apply more influence on the Israeli government in private. As per sources, Trump's negotiator, Steve Witkoff, pressured Netanyahu in late 2024 into accepting a halt in fighting in exchange for the freeing of some hostages.

After Israeli forces launched strikes against Syria's military in July, including hitting a Christian church, the US president urged Netanyahu to alter tactics.

Trump exhibited a level of determination and pressure on an Israeli prime minister that is virtually unprecedented, says Aaron David Miller of the a think tank. "It's unheard of of an American president literally telling an Israeli prime minister that you're going to have to comply or else."

Biden's connection with the Israeli administration was always more strained.

His administration's "bear hug approach" argued that the United States had to support Israel openly in order to enable it to influence the country's war conduct in private.

Underneath this was Biden's decades-long of backing for the state, as well as deep disagreements within his political base over the conflict in Gaza. Each move Biden took endangered dividing his own political backing, while Trump's solid Republican base gave him more flexibility to act.

In the end, domestic politics or personal relationships may have had less importance than the simple fact that, throughout Biden's presidency, Israel was unwilling to make peace.

Eight months into Trump's second term, with the Islamic Republic weakened, Hezbollah to its immediate north significantly reduced and the coastal strip devastated, every one of its major strategy objectives had been achieved.

Business History Assisted Gain Gulf's Backing

An Israeli strike in the Qatari capital, which resulted in the death of a Qatari citizen but not the intended targets, led Trump to issue an ultimatum to Netanyahu. Hostilities had to stop.

Trump had allowed the Israeli military a relatively free hand in Gaza. He lent American military might to Israeli operations in the neighboring country. But an attack on Qatari territory was a different matter completely, pushing him towards the Arab position on how best to conclude the conflict.

A number of administration figures have informed the press that this was a turning point which motivated the president to apply full force to finalize an agreement.

The leader's close ties with the Gulf states are well documented. He has business dealings with Qatar and the UAE. He began both his presidential terms with official trips to Saudi Arabia. This year, Trump also stopped in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.

The president's Abraham Accords, which normalised relations between the Jewish state and a number of Arab nations, such as the Emirates, was the most significant diplomatic achievement of his first term.

His visits he spent in the capitals of the Arabian Peninsula earlier this year contributed to shift his perspective, according to Ed Husain of the Council on Foreign Relations. Trump did not travel to Israel on this Middle East trip but went to the UAE, Saudi Arabia and the state where the leader received consistent appeals to put a stop to the war.

Less than a month after that attack on Doha, Trump sat close as Netanyahu himself called the Qatari leadership to express regret. Subsequently, the prime minister gave approval on the president's comprehensive proposal for the territory - one that additionally had the support of influential Arab states in the area.

Assuming the president's relationship with his counterpart gave him the room to pressure Israel to reach an agreement, his history with Arab rulers may have secured their backing, and assisted them persuade Hamas to commit to the deal.

"A key factor that evidently occurred was that President Trump gained leverage with the Israeli government, and indirectly with Hamas," notes Jon Alterman of the a research center.

"This was crucial. His ability to achieve this on his timing, and not succumb to the desires of the combatants has been a problem that many previous presidents have faced, and he seems to do relatively successfully."

The reality that the president is far better liked in Israel than Netanyahu personally was an advantage that he employed to his advantage, he adds.

Currently Israel has agreed to releasing more than 1,000 Palestinians held in its jails and has agreed to a partial withdrawal from the strip.

The group will free all the remaining hostages, living and dead, captured in the initial October 7 assault, which resulted in the death of over 1,200 Israeli citizens.

An end to the conflict, which has led to the destruction of Gaza and the fatalities of more than 67,000 {Palestinians|Pal