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Initially, the Israeli aerial attack on the Hamas militant delegation in Qatar seemed like another intensification that drove the prospect of a ceasefire out of reach.

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

Diplomacy appeared to be collapsing.

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

That represents a objective that he, and Joe Biden previously, had pursued for nearly two years.

It is just the first step towards a lasting resolution, and the details of Hamas disarmament, administering Gaza and full Israeli withdrawal remain to be worked out.

But if this deal stands, it could be Trump's signature achievement of his return to office - one that escaped Joe Biden and his administration.

Trump's distinct approach and key alliances with Israel and the Arab world appear to have contributed in this breakthrough.

But, as with many diplomatic achievements, there were also factors involved beyond the control of both leaders.

A Close Relationship That Biden Never Had

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

Trump likes to say that Israel has no better friend, and Netanyahu has called Trump as the country's "most supportive friend in the White House". Moreover these warm words have been matched by deeds.

During his first presidential term, Trump relocated the American diplomatic mission in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and discarded a long-held US position that Jewish communities in the occupied territories are illegal, the position under international law.

After the Israeli military began its bombing campaign against Iran in the summer, Trump directed US bombers to target the nation's nuclear enrichment facilities with its largest non-nuclear weapons.

Those public demonstrations of support may have allowed Trump the room to apply more pressure on Israel behind the scenes. According to reports, Trump's negotiator, his representative, browbeat the prime minister in late 2024 into agreeing to a halt in fighting in exchange for the freeing of some hostages.

After Israel launched strikes against Syria's military in the summer, even bombing a place of worship, Trump urged his counterpart to change course.

Trump displayed a level of will and insistence on an Israeli prime minister that is rarely seen, says an analyst of the a think tank. "It's unheard of of an US leader literally telling an Israeli leader that you're going to have to comply or else."

Biden's connection with Netanyahu's government was always more tenuous.

His administration's "bear hug strategy" held that the US had to support Israel openly in order to allow it to moderate the country's military actions behind closed doors.

Underneath this was the president's decades-long of support for the state, as well as sharp divisions within his Democratic coalition over the conflict in Gaza. Each move the leader took endangered dividing his own political backing, whereas Trump's solid Republican base provided him more flexibility to act.

Ultimately, internal considerations or individual ties may have had less importance than the simple fact that, during Biden's presidency, Israel was unwilling to make peace.

Eight months into his new administration, with the Islamic Republic weakened, Hezbollah to its northern border significantly reduced and the coastal strip devastated, every one of its key military goals had been accomplished.

Commercial Background Helped Secure Gulf's Backing

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 final demand to the prime minister. The war had to end.

The US leader had given Israel a significant latitude in Gaza. The president provided American military might to Israel's campaign in the neighboring country. But an attack on Qatar soil was a different matter completely, moving him towards the Arab position on how best to conclude the conflict.

Several Trump officials have informed the press that this was a decisive moment which motivated the leader to apply maximum pressure to finalize an agreement.

The leader's close ties with the Gulf states are well documented. He has business dealings with the emirate and the UAE. The president began both his presidential terms with state visits to the kingdom. This year, Trump also stopped in Doha and the UAE capital.

His Abraham Accords, which normalised relations between the Jewish state and a number of Arab nations, such as the Emirates, was the most significant foreign policy success of his initial presidency.

The time devoted in the capitals of the Gulf region in recent months contributed to change his thinking, according to an expert of the a policy institute. The US president did not travel to the country on this Middle East trip but visited the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar where he heard consistent appeals to bring an end to the conflict.

Within weeks after that attack on Doha, Trump sat close as Netanyahu personally called Qatar to apologise. Subsequently, the Israeli leader gave approval on the president's comprehensive proposal for Gaza - one that additionally had the backing of influential Arab states in the region.

If the president's relationship with Netanyahu gave him the ability to pressure Israel to reach an agreement, his past with Arab rulers may have secured their support, and assisted them persuade the group to commit to the arrangement.

"A key factor that clearly happened was that the US leader developed influence with the Israeli government, and through intermediaries with the militants," notes an analyst of the a research center.

"This was crucial. His ability to achieve this on his own schedule, and not succumb to the desires of the warring sides has been a challenge that lot of earlier administrations have faced, and he seems to handle relatively successfully."

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

Currently Israel has committed to freeing more than 1,000 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons and has agreed to a partial withdrawal from the strip.

Hamas will release all the remaining hostages, living and dead, taken in the original 7 October Hamas attack, which caused the loss of more than 1,200 Israelis.

An end to the war, which has led to the destruction of Gaza and the deaths of over 67,000 {Palestinians|Pal