Another Political Manoeuvre by Joe Biden?

US President Joe Biden surprised many on Friday by announcing that, after intensive diplomacy carried out by his team, and his own conversations with leaders of Israel, Qatar, Egypt, and other Middle Eastern countries, Israel has now offered “a comprehensive new proposal” … “a roadmap to an enduring ceasefire and the release of all hostages.”

He urged Hamas to accept the proposal, and was joined in that by UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron, who said on X that the group “must accept this deal so we can see a stop in the fighting.”

But there are puzzling aspects of Joe Biden’s announcement. First, he chose to make it, rather than the Israelis. Second, he made it on the Jewish sabbath when Israeli politicians normally refrain from important announcements. Third, few people were expecting any such announcement from the president.

Commentators wonder whether the Israelis were caught by surprise, and some are questioning whether there is anything new in this proposal.

Biden’s statement prompted Benjamin Netanyahu to break his normal silence on the sabbath and state on X that Israel’s conditions for ending the war have not changed.

Indeed, Joe Biden’s emphasis on his team’s intensive diplomacy suggests that he is seeking credit for the proposal and trying to secure a big foreign policy success. He needs such a success because Democrats are greatly concerned that polls about the presidential election show him trailing Donald Trump in key states.

Former Israeli ambassador and diplomat Alon Pinkas is one of those who expressed doubts about Biden’s statement. Here he is interviewed about it on NewsNation: