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At first, the Israeli air strike on the Hamas militant delegation in Doha seemed like yet another intensification that pushed the hope of peace further away.

The attack on September 9 breached the sovereignty of an US partner and risked widening the hostilities into a region-wide war.

Diplomacy seemed to be in ruins.

However, it proved to be a key moment that has led in a agreement, declared by Donald Trump, to release all captives still held.

This is a objective that he, and President Joe Biden before him, had sought for nearly two years.

It is just the initial phase towards a more durable peace, and the specifics of Hamas disarmament, Gaza governance and full Israeli withdrawal remain to be negotiated.

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

The president's unique style and crucial relationships with the Israeli government and the Middle Eastern nations seem to have contributed in this success.

However, as with most foreign policy wins, there were also elements at play beyond the influence of either man.

A Close Relationship That Biden Never Had

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

The president often states that the nation has no greater ally, and Netanyahu has called Trump as the country's "most supportive friend in the US presidency". And these positive statements have been matched by deeds.

Throughout his first presidential term, Trump moved the US embassy in the country from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and discarded a long-held US position that Israeli settlements in the occupied territories are illegal, the view under global norms.

After Israel began its bombing campaign against the Islamic Republic in the summer, the US leader directed American aircraft to target the nation's atomic sites with its largest non-nuclear weapons.

Those public demonstrations of support may have allowed Trump the room to exert more pressure on Israel in private. According to reports, Trump's envoy, his representative, pressured the prime minister in late 2024 into accepting a halt in fighting in exchange for the freeing of a number of captives.

When Israeli forces attacked against Syria's military in the summer, even hitting a place of worship, the US president pressured his counterpart to alter tactics.

The leader displayed a degree of determination and insistence on an Israel's leader that is rarely seen, says an analyst of the a think tank. "There is no example of an US leader literally telling an Israeli leader that you're going to have to comply or else."

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

His administration's "close embrace strategy" held that the United States had to embrace the nation openly in order to allow it to influence the country's war conduct behind closed doors.

Underneath this was Biden's decades-long of support for the state, as well as sharp divisions within his Democratic coalition over the Gaza War. Every step Biden took risked fracturing his own domestic support, whereas his successor's solid Republican base provided 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 not ready to reach an agreement.

Eight months into his new administration, with Iran chastened, the militant group to its northern border significantly reduced and the coastal strip devastated, all its major strategy objectives had been accomplished.

Business History Helped Gain Gulf's Backing

The Israeli missile attack in Doha, which resulted in the death of a local national but not the intended targets, prompted Trump to issue an ultimatum to the prime minister. Hostilities had to end.

Trump had allowed Israel a significant latitude in Gaza. The president provided American military might to Israel's campaign in the neighboring country. However an attack on Qatari territory was a different matter entirely, moving him towards the stance of Arab nations on how best to conclude the conflict.

A number of Trump officials have told the press that this was a turning point which motivated the president to apply full force to get a peace deal done.

This US president's strong connections with the Gulf states are widely known. Trump has business dealings with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. He began both his presidential terms with state visits to Saudi Arabia. This year, he also visited in Doha and Abu Dhabi.

The president's normalization agreements, which established ties between Israel and a number of Arab nations, including the UAE, was the most significant diplomatic achievement of his first term.

The time he spent in the capitals of the Gulf region in recent months contributed to shift his perspective, says Ed Husain of the a policy institute. Trump did not travel to Israel on this regional tour but visited the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar where the leader heard consistent appeals to bring an end to the war.

Less than a month after that attack on Doha, Trump was present close as the prime minister himself phoned the Qatari leadership to apologise. Subsequently, the Israeli leader signed off on Trump's 20-point peace plan for Gaza - one that additionally had the support of influential Arab states in the area.

If Trump's relationship with Netanyahu provided him the room to pressure Israel to reach an agreement, his past with Arab rulers may have ensured their backing, and helped them convince Hamas to agree to the deal.

"A key factor that clearly happened was that the US leader developed influence with the Israelis, and through intermediaries with the militants," notes Jon Alterman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"That made a difference. His ability to achieve this on his timing, and not succumb to the desires of the combatants has been a problem that lot of previous presidents have struggled with, and Trump seems to handle relatively successfully."

The fact that Trump is far better liked in Israel than Netanyahu himself was an advantage that he used to his advantage, he adds.

Now the Israeli government has agreed to releasing over a thousand detainees held in its jails and has consented to a limited pullback from Gaza.

The group will free all the captives still held, living and dead, taken during the original 7 October assault, which caused the loss of more than 1,200 Israeli citizens.

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