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At first, Israel's aerial attack on the Hamas delegation in Qatar appeared like yet another escalation that pushed the prospect of a ceasefire further away.

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

Negotiations seemed to be in ruins.

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

This is a objective that Trump, and President Joe Biden previously, had sought for almost 24 months.

It is just the initial phase towards a lasting resolution, and the specifics of Hamas disarmament, administering Gaza and complete Israeli pullout are still to be worked out.

But if this agreement stands, it could be Donald Trump's signature achievement of his second term - one that eluded Joe Biden and his administration.

The president's distinct approach and crucial relationships with Israel and the Arab world appear to have contributed in this success.

But, as with most diplomatic achievements, there were also factors at play beyond the control of both leaders.

A Close Relationship That Eluded Biden

In public, Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu are all smiles.

The president often states that the nation has no better friend, and Netanyahu has described Trump as the country's "most supportive friend in the US presidency". And these warm words have been matched by actions.

During his first presidential term, the president moved the American diplomatic mission in Israel from Tel Aviv to the contested capital and abandoned a traditional American stance that Israeli settlements in the occupied territories are illegal, the view under international law.

After the Israeli military began its air strikes against Iran in the summer, Trump ordered American aircraft to target the Iran's nuclear enrichment facilities with its most powerful conventional bombs.

Those visible shows of support may have given the president the room to apply more influence on Israel in private. According to reports, the president's negotiator, Steve Witkoff, pressured Netanyahu in late 2024 into agreeing to a halt in fighting in return for the freeing of some hostages.

After Israeli forces attacked against Syria's military in the summer, including hitting a Christian church, Trump pressured his counterpart to alter tactics.

Trump exhibited a level of determination and pressure on an Israeli prime minister that is rarely seen, according to an analyst of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. "It's unheard of of an US leader directly instructing an Israeli prime minister that you're going to have to comply or else."

Biden's relationship with Netanyahu's government was consistently more tenuous.

The Biden team's "close embrace approach" held that the US had to embrace the nation openly in order to enable it to moderate the country's war conduct behind closed doors.

Underneath this was the president's nearly half-century of support for Israel, as well as sharp divisions within his Democratic coalition over the conflict in Gaza. Every step the leader took risked fracturing his own domestic support, whereas his successor's solid Republican base provided him more flexibility to act.

Ultimately, domestic politics or personal relationships may have had little impact than the simple fact that, throughout his term, Israel was unwilling to make peace.

Eight months into his new administration, with Iran chastened, the militant group to its northern border significantly reduced and the coastal strip in ruins, all its key military goals had been accomplished.

Business History Assisted Gain Support from Arab States

The Israeli missile attack in Doha, which killed a local national but not the intended targets, prompted Trump to issue an ultimatum to the prime minister. Hostilities had to stop.

Trump had given Israel a significant latitude in Gaza. The president lent US armed support to Israeli operations in Iran. However an attack on Qatari territory was a different matter entirely, moving him closer to the stance of Arab nations on how best to conclude the conflict.

A number of administration figures have informed media outlets that this was a decisive moment which galvanised the leader to exert maximum pressure to get a peace deal done.

This US president's strong connections with the Gulf states are well documented. He has commercial interests with the emirate and the United Arab Emirates. He began each of his administrations with official trips to the kingdom. Recently, he also visited in Doha and Abu Dhabi.

His Abraham Accords, which normalised relations between the Jewish state and several Muslim states, including the UAE, was the biggest diplomatic achievement of his first term.

His visits he spent in the capitals of the Arabian Peninsula in recent months contributed to change his thinking, says Ed Husain of the a policy institute. Trump did not travel to the country on this Middle East trip but visited the UAE, the kingdom and Qatar where the leader received consistent appeals to bring an end to the war.

Within weeks after that attack on Doha, Trump sat close as the prime minister personally called the Qatari leadership to express regret. And later that day, the Israeli leader gave approval on the president's 20-point peace plan for Gaza - one that also had the support of key Muslim nations in the area.

If the president's alliance with his counterpart gave him the ability to influence the government to reach an agreement, his history with Arab rulers may have ensured their support, and helped them persuade Hamas to commit to the deal.

"A key factor that evidently occurred was that the US leader gained influence with the Israeli government, and through intermediaries with Hamas," notes an analyst of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

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

The fact that Trump is much more popular in Israel than Netanyahu personally was leverage that Trump used to his advantage, the expert continues.

Currently Israel has committed to freeing over a thousand detainees imprisoned in Israeli prisons and has agreed to a limited pullback from the strip.

Hamas will release all the captives still held, living and dead, captured during the initial October 7 assault, which resulted in the death of more than 1,200 Israeli citizens.

An end to the conflict, which has resulted in the destruction of Gaza and the deaths of over 67,000 {Palestinians|Pal