The Gaza peace deal is a major win for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, says Middle East expert Sarah Yerkes. But what he really cares about is the West Bank, she says — with all eyes on Gaza, Israel is expanding its presence in large portions of the territory.

Jerusalem

Israel and Iran have agreed a ceasefire after a twelve day conflict. Meanwhile, Israel strikes in Gaza continue with the humanitarian crisis deepening.

Middle East Conflict

Middle East and US foreign policy analyst Sarah Yerkes, speaking with DW News, expressed skepticism about claims of lasting peace in the Middle East following recent agreements involving Gaza. Yerkes emphasized that while the release of hostages and prisoners is a significant step, many critical issues remain unresolved, including whether Hamas will agree to disarm and the absence of detailed implementation plans.

Yerkes also raised concerns that international attention is largely focused on Gaza, while significant developments in the West Bank, such as annexation efforts, are being overlooked. She noted that the current US administration supports Israeli actions in the West Bank and has not recognized Palestinian statehood, making the prospect of a two-state solution increasingly unlikely. Despite some optimism for Gaza's reconstruction, Yerkes cautioned that substantial challenges remain for long-term peace and stability.

Everybody is forgetting about the West Bank: Sarah Yerkes

Let's now talk to Sarah Yergesh. She's a Middle East and US foreign policy analyst with a Carnegie Endowment for International Peace That's a global affairs think-tank. Welcome back to DW Sarah Now, do you share US President Donald Trump's belief that we are in fact at the start of the lasting peace in the Middle East? Unfortunately, no I think this is just one first step a very important first step to see the hostages returned to see the prisoners released It's a big achievement, but there's still so much more that needs to be done None of this has the details hammered out Hamas and Israel are not at the table in Sharm el-sheikh and there's so many details including whether or not Hamas will agree to Disarm, which is one of the crucial pieces of this that have yet to be decided Let's look at that aspect because it is really one of the the key Elements that need to be determined when we look at the way forward. What would have to happen for Hamas to disarm? That's the million-dollar question, you know Hamas so far in previous conflicts has failed to agree to this It's something that we've not seen any sign so far that they will be willing to do We do right now have the ball in their court So to say that, you know, they have the power and you know This is a phased agreement where there are many many Opportunities for both Israel and Hamas to say the other side has violated the agreement. They haven't done X They haven't done Y and so I think for Hamas they have every incentive to want to hold on to their arms Just in case this does not continue to go forward in case this goes south We actually saw the Israeli defense minister I believe it was already today saying that Hamas was not Complying with their part of the deal by not handing over immediately all the deceased hostages in Gaza Do you believe the prime minister and his cabinet when they say they are committed to this peace? I Do think they are committed to the peace in Gaza, but what we have not been talking about I think what everyone is sort of forgetting is the West Bank and I think if you're Netanyahu This is a major win for you. You can say look we ended the conflict in Gaza This is over and in the meantime, don't look at what I'm doing over here Which is annexing large portions of the West Bank. And so even when we're talking about a potential Palestinian state Potentially, you know having a major move forward and recognizing a Palestinian state We're really only talking about Gaza and so I think for Netanyahu what he cares about is the West Bank anyway and I think he's able right now to kind of Confuse everyone or sort of distract everyone by making it look like he's a peacemaker when in reality He's moving forward with everything. He's been doing in the West Bank for years Where does the US government stand on the issue of the West Bank and the settlements there? This government the Trump administration is very much on Netanyahu's side They are willing to let Netanyahu kind of do whatever he wants And if we have to think about you know, what is Donald Trump's motivation? It's getting a Nobel Peace Prize He says the conflict in the Middle East is over. That's not true. He says this is his plan He's the only one who's you know, really done anything to move this forward again. That's not true And so for him, you know, once this deal is signed today and from Al Shaikh for Trump, it's done. It's a done deal It's over He has achieved peace in the Middle East and he can move on and I don't think he has paying much attention to what Netanyahu is doing in the West Bank, nor does he really care to involve himself there He supports Netanyahu and he has long said that he believes that Netanyahu has the right to annex the West Bank Where does that leave the prospect of a two-state solution? We've seen many countries in recent weeks and months recognize Palestinian statehoods at the same time a two-state solution Has looked increasingly Unlikely, where does it stand today that we're seeing Donald Trump take credit essentially for making peace in the Middle East? Yeah, I mean interestingly Trump has not recognized the Palestinian state And so I think we're in this weird position right now where as you said at the one hand We're probably the closest we've been to global recognition of a Palestinian state And on the other hand the furthest away from where we've been to have Palestinian sovereignty over the West Bank And so you have this big divide between the West Bank and Gaza that's happening right now That's playing out and at the same time, you know all the details about who actually governs Gaza We don't know what that looks like yet this idea of an international force that would help provide stabilization We don't know which countries would actually make up that international force So there's all these broad strokes of what could potentially be a future. These are the same broad strokes We've known about for decades. They haven't been implemented. The hard work has not yet started Yet I think the United States who really needs to be involved Very intimately for a deal to be standing long term as well as the Arab states who also need to be involved and bought in They need to also be on top of this and making sure that these details are hammered out And I think Trump is going to go home, you know and kind of move on to the next conflict that he wants to solve All of that said and based on today's developments everything that we've seen everything that's happened today what we've heard What is your best assessment of Gaza's future briefly if you can because we're running out of time Well, I think this is a great day for Gaza the idea that aid can start flowing again There's a lot of people committed to reconstruction So I am optimistic that in the long run Gaza will return to a habitable place to place where people can call it home And can be happy and thriving but it's going to take a lot of time to get there That was middle east analyst. Sorry your case. Thank you so much Thank you You

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Everybody is forgetting about the West Bank: Sarah Yerkes

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