US ‘leadership’ in tatters as Doha talks fizzle

Alameen Templeton

America’s role as a mediator in Arabia is over.
That is the only clear message emerging from the smoking ruins of its “Doha peace talks” that Hamas stayed away from and the Israelis walked out of, leaving the US with egg on its face and its president emasculated, wagging a finger impotently at the departing Israeli’s backs.
Analysts are now saying continued US involvement in negotiations in Arabia will only lead to a full-blown, regional war.
America’s insistence on being involved in talks while remaining welded firmly on the Israeli side has undermined its legitimacy and influence as the Gaza genocide has unfoleded before the horrified eyes of the world.
Meanwhile, rival powers, China and Russia, have made several interventions over the past months that have given Palestinians factions breathing space for knit together some form of unity and a coherent path going forward, once the US-enabled genocide ends.
As the Doha talks ended in shambles, China accused the US of being the “biggest nuclear threat facing the world”.
It accused the US of trying to hold the world hostage to its nuclear arsenal while it tried to keep a grip on global hegemony that was slipping irresistibly from its fingers. The criticism came as the US signed an agreement with Japan to “upgrade” its military presence in that country.
China accused the US of using vassal states to embed its military in order to sow regional instability, much as it was doing in Arabia and Israel where it manipulated regional tensions to promote its own interests.
In East Asia, it hyped the “Chinese threat” to arm its allies and cow them into a corner with it; in Arabia, it was the Iranian and Hamas threat that the US used to “provoke bloc confrontation and undermine regional peace and stability”.
And that was clear to be seen in Doha this week.
All that was needed for progress, was firmness from the US that Israel implement the deal that was put on the table months ago. Washington was incapable of exerting any pressure on Israel and that means the back door to walking away remains wide open.
Hamas said late Friday as the “mediators’ meeting” came to an end, that “Israel” had thwarted the ceasefire negotiations and the efforts of mediators once again.
Ghazi Hamad, a member of the Hamas political bureau in the Gaza Strip, pointed out none of the disputed issues have been settled during the talks.
In an interview for Al Mayadeen , he said no agreement could be reached without a complete ceasefire, the withdrawal of the occupation forces from Gaza, the return of displaced people, and the completion of a prisoner exchange deal.
Hamas’ enjoyed the full backing of Palestinian factions, he said, adding: “We will no longer engage in futile negotiations.”
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu was sowing deception again, he said, pointing out Netanyahu had not provided clear answers to any the key questions needed to reach an agreement.
Instead, he tried to lay out new conditions, undermining previous agreements and prolonging the genocide in Gaza.
He also recalled Netanyahu had publicly stated he had no intention to stop the war.
Hamad said the agreement already on the table contained no ambiguity – as the US had made clear before the talks, all that was required was a “yes” or “no” – yet the Zionists were still stalling.
For example, they tried to introduce new conditions for the key Philadelphi Route through Gaza, despite previously agreeing to withdraw from it.
He denied reports by The Wall Street Journal that “Israel” was ready to withdraw from the Philadelphi Route.
The Zionists were also trying to keep a loophole in the agreement, which would enable it to resume the genocide at a later date. This showed clearly why it was essential for mediators to pressure “Israel” to honour previous agreements.
Regarding Hezbollah and Iran’s response to the Israeli assassinations of commander Fouad Shokor in Beirut’s Southern Suburb and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, Hamad asserted that both sides have every right to retaliate against Israeli crimes, stressing, however, that this path is separate from the ongoing ceasefire negotiations, Al Mayadeen says.
Hamas called on Arab nations to break their silence and stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people amid Israel’s unprecedented atrocities.
An expert on Palestinian resistance, Hani al-Dali, said Hamas’s decision not to participate in the “absurd” ceasefire talks was correct because the terms of the agreement contained no genuine clauses that would lead to real change or even to substantiate a belief that the negotiations were real. Formulas used during the talks indicated an intent to waste time.
“It is clear that Netanyahu has rejected all mediator proposals for an agreement,” he said. The suggestion to postpone the talks to next week would simply give the Israeli occupation more space for more genocide.
He added that the United States was trying to buy time to prepare the strongest possible defenses against the anticipated response.
Hamad described the US support for the Israeli occupation entity as “a recipe for a regional war.”
Earlier, the US, Qatar, and Egypt announced that senior officials from their governments will reconvene in Cairo before the end of next week with an aim to conclude a ceasefire.