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Initially, the Israeli aerial attack on the Hamas delegation in Doha appeared like yet another intensification that drove the prospect of a ceasefire further away.

This strike on 9 September breached the sovereignty of an American ally and risked widening the conflict into a broader regional conflict.

Negotiations seemed to be in ruins.

Instead, it turned out to be a key moment that culminated in a agreement, announced by Donald Trump, to release all captives still held.

This is a goal that Trump, and Joe Biden previously, had pursued for nearly two years.

This marks just the first step towards a lasting resolution, and the specifics of disarming Hamas, Gaza governance and full Israeli withdrawal are still to be worked out.

But if this agreement holds, it could be Donald Trump's defining accomplishment of his second term - one that escaped Joe Biden and his administration.

Trump's distinct approach and crucial relationships with Israel and the Middle Eastern nations appear to have played a role in this success.

However, as with most foreign policy wins, there were also factors involved beyond the influence of either man.

A Close Relationship Which Biden Never Had

Publicly, Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are all smiles.

The president often states that Israel has no greater ally, and the Israeli leader has called him as the country's "greatest ever ally in the US presidency". Moreover these warm words have been backed up by deeds.

Throughout his initial time in office, Trump relocated the American diplomatic mission in Israel from its former location to Jerusalem and abandoned a traditional American stance that Israeli settlements in the Palestinian West Bank are illegal, the position under global norms.

When Israel began its air strikes against Iran in June, Trump directed US bombers to strike the Iran's atomic sites with its most powerful conventional bombs.

Those visible shows of support may have given Trump the room to apply more influence on Israel in private. As per sources, Trump's negotiator, Steve Witkoff, pressured Netanyahu in late 2024 into accepting a temporary ceasefire in return for the release of some hostages.

When Israeli forces attacked against Syrian forces in July, even hitting a place of worship, Trump pressured Netanyahu to alter tactics.

The leader displayed a degree of determination and insistence on an Israeli prime minister that is virtually unprecedented, according to Aaron David Miller of the a think tank. "It's unheard of of an US leader directly instructing an Israeli prime minister that they must agree or else."

Biden's relationship with Netanyahu's government was consistently more strained.

His administration's "bear hug strategy" argued that the United States had to support the nation publicly in order to allow it to moderate the country's war conduct behind closed doors.

Underneath this was the president's nearly half-century of backing for the state, as well as deep disagreements within his political base over the conflict in Gaza. Every step the leader took risked fracturing his own domestic support, whereas Trump's loyal conservative voters gave him more room to manoeuvre.

Ultimately, internal considerations or personal relationships may have had little impact than the simple fact that, during his term, the Israeli government was not ready to reach an agreement.

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

Commercial Background Assisted Secure Support from Arab States

The Israeli missile attack in the Qatari capital, which resulted in the death of a local national but no Hamas officials, prompted the president to issue an ultimatum to the prime minister. The war had to stop.

The US leader had given Israel a relatively free hand in the territory. The president provided American military might to Israeli operations in the neighboring country. But an strike on Qatar soil was a separate issue entirely, pushing him towards the stance of Arab nations on how best to end the war.

Several administration figures have informed media outlets that this was a decisive moment which motivated the president to apply full force to finalize an agreement.

The leader's close ties with the Gulf states are well documented. Trump has business dealings with the emirate and the UAE. The president began each of his administrations with state visits to the kingdom. Recently, he also visited in Doha and Abu Dhabi.

His normalization agreements, which normalised relations between Israel and several Muslim states, including the Emirates, was the biggest diplomatic achievement of his first term.

The time devoted in the capitals of the Gulf region in recent months contributed to shift his perspective, according to Ed Husain of the a policy institute. The US president did not visit the country on this Middle East trip but went to the United Arab Emirates, the kingdom and Qatar where the leader received consistent appeals to put a stop to the war.

Within weeks after that attack on the city, the president sat close as the prime minister personally called Qatar to apologise. Subsequently, the prime minister gave approval on Trump's 20-point peace plan for the territory - one that also had the backing of key Muslim nations in the region.

If Trump's relationship with his counterpart gave him the room to pressure the government to reach an agreement, his history with Arab rulers may have secured their support, and assisted them persuade Hamas to commit to the arrangement.

"One of the things that clearly happened was that President Trump gained influence with the Israelis, and through intermediaries with Hamas," notes Jon Alterman of the a research center.

"This was crucial. The capacity to achieve this on his timing, and not succumb to the desires of the warring sides has been a problem that lot of previous presidents have faced, and Trump appears to do with some success."

The fact that Trump is far better liked in the nation than the prime minister personally was leverage that he employed to his benefit, the expert continues.

Now the Israeli government has agreed to freeing more than 1,000 Palestinians held in its jails and has consented to a partial withdrawal from Gaza.

Hamas will free all the remaining hostages, living and dead, captured during the initial October 7 assault, which resulted in the loss of more than 1,200 Israelis.

An end to the war, which has led to the devastation of the territory and the fatalities of over 67,000 {Palestinians|Pal