American commentator Thomas Friedman recorded the observations he collected during a tour he took during the past few days in the Gulf region. In an article published by the New York Times, he said that he had been concerned since Israel launched its invasion of Gaza to eliminate Hamas without a plan for what to do with the Strip and its people in the wake of any victory.

“Having now spent a week in Saudi Arabia and the Emirates feeling the pulse of this important corner of the Arab world, I now feel even more worried,” he said.

He said that Hamas has built a vast network of tunnels under Gaza, and as the Israeli forces seek to eliminate it, they are “forced to destroy huge numbers of structures.” “It is the only way they can kill a lot of Hamas fighters and demilitarize Gaza without losing many of their soldiers in the short window that Israel feels it has in the face of pressure from the United States and other allies to end the invasion.” Speaking about the October 7 attacks and Israel’s right to respond to them, he said that Hamas planned and “executed a campaign of unspeakable barbarism that seemed to aim to make Israel crazy and attack without thinking the next morning... and this is exactly what Israel did.”

He added that Israel, in its quest to dismantle Hamas and its military capabilities and kill its prominent leaders, killed and wounded thousands of innocent civilians in Gaza. He claimed that “Hamas knew this would happen and did not care at all.” But Israel will inherit responsibility for a massive humanitarian catastrophe that will require years for a global coalition to repair and manage.”

Friedman referred to a recent article in the Haaretz newspaper on this subject, written by David Rosenberg, in which he said, “Even if the fighting ends with a decisive victory over Hamas, Israel will be burdened with a problem that is almost insoluble.” Most public discussions about what will happen the day after the war have focused on who will govern Gaza. This alone is a complex question, but the problem is much deeper than who will be responsible for law and order and the provision of basic services: whoever is in charge will have to rebuild the wreckage that is Gaza and create a functioning economy.”

Friedman said that his talks in the Gulf states indicate that no Gulf Arab country (not to mention the European Union countries or the US Congress) will rush to Gaza with bags of money for its reconstruction unless Israel has a legitimate and effective Palestinian partner, and is committed to negotiating one day... The two-state solution. “Any Israeli official who says otherwise is delusional,” he said.

Friedman said his talks in the Gulf states indicate that no Gulf country will rush to Gaza with bags of money for its reconstruction unless Israel has a legitimate and effective Palestinian partner.

He added that he returned optimistic from his trip that the normalization negotiations with Saudi Arabia had not ended, as Riyadh was committed in principle to resuming the negotiations that were ongoing before October 7. Negotiators were discussing a grand deal in which the United States would enter into a security treaty with Saudi Arabia, in exchange for the latter normalizing relations with Israel — provided that Israel commits to specific steps to work with the Palestinian Authority toward achieving a two-state solution.

He stressed that he formed a very strong impression that the Saudis want the Americans to end the war in Gaza as soon as possible, because the death and destruction in Gaza is radicalizing its young population, while scaring away foreign investors and generally hindering what Saudi Arabia wants to focus on: the 2030 vision of the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

He said that the leaders of these countries are not sympathetic to Hamas and will not be sad if it is defeated, but they doubt Israel's ability to eliminate it forever, and are concerned that the damage to Gaza, in its attempt to do so, will lead to bad unintended consequences.

In light of the extremist government that wants to expand settlement in the West Bank and Jerusalem, and whose symbols aspire to settle again in Gaza, there will be no government willing to concede to a ruling Palestinian authority.

Friedman stressed that if Israel does not reach a long-term political vision to entice the world to help it finance the reconstruction of Gaza, it will be exposed to a lot of diplomatic and economic harm. Gaza may ultimately turn into a major wound in the chest that exhausts Israel militarily, economically, and morally, and takes its superpower sponsor, the United States, in its path.

He added that Netanyahu is now campaigning to retain his position by trying to prove to his far-right base that he is the only leader willing to tell the Biden administration face-to-face that his country will never do the minimum required by the United States: that it help Israel take care of the Palestinian Authority after its renewal, and provide a long-term political horizon for the Palestinian state in order to develop a Palestinian partner capable of one day ruling Gaza liberated from Hamas and Israel. He stated that Western diplomats and Saudi officials explained to him how the political winds opposing any new normalization attempt are blowing today in “bad” Arab battles taking place on Arab social media over the issue of Palestine.