ROGER KIMBALL: The Physics and Politics of Peace: Trump’s Triumph in the Middle East.
Peace in the Middle East was impossible—until it wasn’t. Donald Trump started to traverse that impassable domain in his first term with the Abraham Accords. Then, just a few days ago, he managed another impossible passage when he brokered peace between the irreconcilable forces of Israel and Hamas. Almost as impressive, Trump solicited and received the support of Muslim countries from Indonesia to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, and Egypt. Amazing.
How did he do it? Well, in part, it was “the art of the deal” in practice. But stepping back, Trump’s forceful yet patient endeavor on behalf of peace reminded me of Walter Bagehot’s insights in his neglected masterpiece, Physics and Politics. First published in 1872, this curious book is partly a contribution to political history and partly an exploration of the often forgotten truism that not all things are possible at all times and in all places. If political liberty is a precious possession, Bagehot saw, it is forged in a long development of civilization, much of which is distinctly, and necessarily, illiberal.
Trump has brokered an unthinkable deal: the release of the final 20 live Israeli hostages, with Israel maintaining a secure posture in the Gaza Strip; the possibility of a non-Hamas future in Gaza, supported by regional allies; the even greater possibility of future Abraham Accords with countries like Saudi Arabia and Indonesia.
So, how did this happen?
It happened the same way things always happen in the Middle East: The decisionmakers ignored the conventional wisdom.
The conventional wisdom said that military action could not guarantee security. That wasn’t just wrong; it was catastrophically wrong: It was military action that took out the supporting pillars beneath Hamas’ feet.
Finally, speaking of the physics of the Middle East, the one man who is absolutely everywhere in Gaza just keeps on going and going: Of All the People to Survive in Gaza, You Knew Mr FAFO Had to Be One of Them.
UPDATE:
Hamas is the only army in the world that wears civilian clothes during war and puts on uniforms during ceasefires. pic.twitter.com/QrGb9jtzbm
— Amit Segal (@AmitSegal) October 12, 2025