Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume said Monday that the recent peace deal and the diminished standing of Hamas in the region could quickly reignite normalization talks between Saudi Arabia and Israel.
Appearing on “Special Report,” Hume stated that Hamas’s initial goal with the October 7, 2023, attack was to derail the Saudi-Israel diplomatic efforts, which Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had described just two weeks prior as “closer every day” to an agreement. RELATED: Two Years Of Captivity Ends: All 20 Surviving Hostages Freed In Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal
“I think that that dynamic you spoke of that was interrupted by the vicious attack, that hideous atrocities committed on October 7, two years ago, that was a response, I think, to the fact that it looked like the Saudis and Israel might be coming to some kind of an agreement,” Hume told host Bret Baier. “Recognition. And I think that the terrorists were desperate to head that off.”
The massive surprise attack by Hamas, which involved firing thousands of rockets and militants crossing the border, launched a devastating two-year conflict. The war, however, appears to have ultimately backfired on the terror group.
“Well, they tried,” Hume observed. “The result was a bloody two-year war with terrible destruction, but it was the end of it really, was the end of Hamas as an important force in the region. And I think that opens the way for that momentum… to move forward.”
Peace Deal Ends War, Weakens Hamas
The analyst’s comments come as President Donald Trump announced a U.S.-brokered peace deal this past Wednesday. The first phase of the agreement involved an Israeli troop pullback and the full release of all hostages.
Hamas has agreed to release the remaining 48 hostages and relinquish power in Gaza, contingent on broader Arab and Palestinian backing. The final 20 living Israeli hostages were freed Monday, marking a pivotal moment in the end of the conflict. Emotional videos of freed hostages reuniting with their families quickly circulated on social media.
The two-year conflict resulted in significant casualties, with over 60,000 Palestinians and 1,983 Israelis killed, according to figures from Gaza’s Health Ministry and Israel’s Foreign Ministry.
The terror group’s agreement to the terms, following a protracted war that began with atrocities on October 7, 2023, signals a major potential shift in the regional power balance, paving the way for the diplomatic efforts that Hamas had tried so desperately to prevent.
READ: Biden Claims His Admin ‘Set The Stage’ For Trump’s Israel-Hamas Peace Deal
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