Already, the fragile deal has come under considerable stress, and it could collapse in the weeks to come. Yet for the time being, the fighting has stopped in both Gaza and Lebanon, and hostages have begun to come home.

There is "almost nothing left" of Gaza and rebuilding the war-ravaged enclave could take 10 to 15 years, U.S. President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff told Axios in an interview at the end of his trip to the region on Thursday.

The Associated Press, which shared office space with Hamas for years, contends that Trump’s suggestion “openly contradict[s] Palestinian identity and deep connection to Gaza.” Does it? One of the prevailing myths of the Israel-Arab conflict is that most “Palestinians” have a strong historic connection to the land that goes back centuries.