Netanyahu's absence — or cancellation, as it was officially described — was expected. The reasons were more about internal coalition dynamics than a fear of shaking hands with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, despite Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's threat to boycott the summit if Netanyahu showed up.

US President Donald Trump can claim full credit for the summit's only tangible achievement: securing a ceasefire that resulted in the release of hostages, no small accomplishment. Still, it was not a peace agreement, nor even a framework for one. Just a ceasefire, vulnerable to collapse at any moment.

Trump has shown a strong preference for conflict resolution over actual peace agreements. But now he has an opportunity to complete what he started and make a real bid for the Nobel Peace Prize. Walking away from this issue now would be a historic mistake, especially for someone who understands how critical reconciliation between the peoples is. Without it, the cycle of conflict will continue for decades to come.

The Sharm el-Sheikh summit was little more than a publicity event, lacking any real political substance. Neither of the main parties to the conflict was present. There was no framework for an agreement or even a foundation for meaningful negotiations. Nothing to guarantee Israel's security or to ensure the eventual creation of a Palestinian state, regardless of its final configuration.

Israel's leadership, and Netanyahu in particular, must face the public and acknowledge a hard truth: war, even if endless, cannot manage the conflict. It cannot resolve it, and it certainly will not bring lasting security to Israel. Peace, and more importantly, reconciliation, is the only way forward, even if it requires a shift in the natural composition of his governing coalition.

On the Palestinian side, the leadership must move swiftly to send Abbas, now elderly, worn out, and weak, into dignified retirement. A new Palestinian leader must emerge — someone capable of genuinely advancing toward reconciliation and an end to the conflict. This must begin with a single legal system and a single armed force under the Palestinian Authority. Yes, that would likely intensify internal Palestinian strife, but it is a necessary step. Only a unified Palestinian voice can truly negotiate and decide.

At a time when Israel is achieving real security gains and has reshaped the regional landscape, it must now make bold internal decisions, ones that will require historic compromises. To break free of international isolation and fend off war crimes allegations at The Hague, Israel must be willing to pay the price of ending the conflict and relinquishing control over the territories it captured in the 1967 Six-Day War.

Trump remains the only figure who can impose a solution on both sides. And when Arab and Muslim countries are extending a hand to Israel, willing to pay political and financial costs for peace, often more than Israel is, the moment is ripe for bold American leadership. A real peace summit must be convened — not in Sharm el-Sheikh, but in

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Both the Israeli and Egyptian defense establishments fully recognize the importance of maintaining relations, safeguarding the security status quo, and ensuring coordination and cooperation. Even though the peace between the two countries remains cold and devoid of genuine solidarity, its significance today is greater than ever.

Netanyahu's criticism of Egypt seems to be coordinated with el-Sissi's government and aimed primarily at the Israeli public, serving domestic political needs. It was meant as a response to reports claiming that Egypt was violating the peace treaty by strengthening and expanding its forces in Sinai and along the border with Israel. In reality, there has been no violation of the treaty. Egypt cannot violate it, and the military adjustments are mostly aimed at preventing Gazans from fleeing into Sinai.

The Egyptian military has indeed changed over the past decade, technologically and numerically. This can be seen in its purchase of advanced weapons, including German-made submarines. But the changes are limited and tightly supervised, since the primary supplier is the United States. Washington never transfers weapons without coordination with Israel. This is also reflected in the long-standing American refusal to sell advanced fighter jets to Gulf states, despite their close relations with Washington and massive investments there.

Israel and Egypt share strategic assets, and for 45 years since signing their peace treaty, they have managed to protect them: from securing the Red Sea and preventing the Houthis from threatening shipping routes, to intelligence operations in Africa, the fight against Islamic State terrorists in Sinai, and confronting their mutual enemy, Iran. Any violation of the treaty could disrupt this delicate balance of mutual interests, something neither country wants. This is why ties between Cairo and Jerusalem, often routed through Washington, certain European states, and the Gulf, are not likely to be harmed, especially in light of the profound shifts the Middle East has undergone over the past two years.

In fact, the current war has only reinforced cooperation. It is no coincidence that Egypt has long played, and continues to play, a crucial role in negotiations between Israel and Hamas, well before the war erupted on October 7.

Given the current reality, it is difficult to be optimistic about full normalization between the Israeli and Egyptian peoples. That process is likely to take far longer than many can imagine. Yet without question, military coordination and security normalization will remain in place. The two countries' strategic interests are shared and intertwined, regardless of who holds power in Jerusalem, Cairo, or in global capitals.

In practice, there is no violation of the peace treaty. The changes are narrowly tailored and primarily intended to prevent Gazans from crossing into Sinai.

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I've been writing a weekly opinion column for years. Every time I am unsure of what the subject should be. But this week I was not sure whether I should write a piece at all.

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Because if I do, and my words are misconstrued, will the police rush to arrest me and issue a statement to the media? That is, if I dare in some way express empathy with the victims – the children and the elderly – in the Gaza Strip, even though I entirely blame Hamas for everything.

The first reason why I was debating whether to write something or not is because anyone who expresses sympathy with the Palestinian casualties is labeled as a supporter of terrorism.

I, along with the vast majority of Arabs, empathize with the pain of Jewish and Arab Israeli families who were killed in the south. None of us think that Hamas acted out of respect for the Palestinian national struggle.

The second reason why I was debating is due to the personal tragedy that my family went through. After Hezbollah fired an anti-tank missile from Lebanon toward Shtula, four workers were injured: one was killed on the spot, and three others – my uncle and his two sons – were seriously injured.

One lost his hearing and had back and neck surgery, the second had leg surgery, and the third, although sustained light injuries, was hospitalized in shock and crying like a child. Their worlds are shattered and the road to recovery is long.

I myself live just a few kilometers from the Lebanese border, in Kafr Yasif. Since the beginning of the war, tanks and other fighting vehicles have been passing through town toward the border, and of course, the missiles have been shaking the entire house and sowing fear and anxiety, especially since there is not a single public shelter in any Arab settlement.

In the last two weeks, most of what I have done, apart from looking after my family, is sending messages to friends – Jews and Arabs – to ask if they were safe and whether they needed a helping hand.

But most of whom I contacted barely replied. There is an atmosphere of fear. I feel distrust even from people I've known and spoken to daily for years.

I have chosen not to watch the news or listen to the radio because I can no longer take hearing of the atrocities that took place in the south, as well as the deaths in Gaza, especially the children.

Meanwhile, the war continues, with all its might. Not only to defeat Hamas but to restore Israel's honor.

It's a matter of time until the war is over because even power has limits. Until then, in the hope that a northern front will not open, more people will still lose their lives. This is deeply regrettable, regardless of who the victims will be.

Therefore, revenge, attack, and assassinations are not a plan. We need an actual plan.

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Last week, just a few days before Eid al-Fitr, one of my good friends invited me to join him for a holiday vacation in Turkey, from where he had returned less than a month earlier.

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I asked him how he could afford another vacation for a family of seven so soon, to which he replied that his only expense was the tickets as he had recently purchased an apartment in Turkey.

"At a cost of only about 400,000 shekels [$110,000]," he continued. "If you own residential property, you get the right to residency the moment you register, and potentially even citizenship. From an economic point of view, this is not a bad investment at all."

When it comes to relocating, my friend is not alone. What? Did you think the Jews were the only ones buying apartments in Europe and fantasizing about moving abroad? This is the latest hot trend in the Arab sector. Not all of them, of course, but a significant percentage.

Although there is still no data on how many Arab Israelis purchase real estate abroad, the topic is on the agenda, from living room conversations to social media.

On the face of it, it might seem like an unexpected trend. After all, Arab Israelis are watching the protests against the judicial reform and believe the situation will get worse, the rift will grow and the IDF will weaken, so those opposing the government will look for greener pastures abroad, especially as many Israelis have dual citizenship and the wealthy are already investing in countries such as Cyprus, Greece, the United States, Hungary, and Germany.

Arab Israelis, on the other hand, have more limited options, both financially and because they don't have the option of getting a European passport and as such are, for better or worse, "stuck" here.

But in reality, the opposite is true. Like the Jews, many Arabs are also looking into options abroad and some of them are already making it a reality. And you'd be surprised, but often it is for the very same reason that the Jews are looking into living abroad.

Firstly, the wave of crime and violence in the Arab sector is tearing the community apart and disrupting the ability to build a comfortable and peaceful life in a supportive and prosperous environment.

Secondly, many fear the judicial reform will harm them and feel they may be left defenseless against the government, so they must prepare solutions for an emergency situation.

And finally, due to the cost of living, which burdens everyone, especially young people and business and professional owners who are financially independent, but are further and further away from owning a home and being comfortable.

It so happens that many buy apartments in Turkey, Georgia, Greece, Spain and even the United Arab Emirates. If buying an apartment in Israel at a reasonable price is impossible, then it will be done abroad, especially if that purchase will also allow for residency, a work visa, and subsidized education and better universities for the children.

As I mentioned, there is no official data yet as to how widespread this trend is in the Arab sector, but one thing is clear: Jewish and Arab Israelis are more similar than we thought. We live together, hope together, and sometimes even despair a little of this country, together.

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Tuesday came as no surprise to the Arab public. The results were known in advance, and all along. Balad, whether it makes it into the Knesset or not, will claim – and perhaps rightly so – that it was responsible for the increase in the percentage of Arab voters, for it is the one that brought vitality to the sleepiness that characterized the period prior to the submission of the electoral lists, even though it seems that the split from the Joint Arab List (now Hadash-Ta'al) might result in Benjamin Netanyahu coming back to power.

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Arab Israeli politics have reached a new low. Now after the end of the election campaign, the Arab parties and their representatives in the Knesset will have to do some self-reflection. They will have to explain how a fifth of the country's citizens fail to integrate into Israeli politics, neither in the opposition nor in the coalition, and neither when there are 15 seats nor when there are four.

Two factors led to the increase in the percentage of Arab voters. The first is the conduct of right-wing leaders Netanyahu and Itamar Ben-Gvir, who scared the Jewish public with the number of Arab voters expected. During their campaigns, Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir spared no claims or pulling out guns. They essentially allowed the Arab parties to present the voters with a convincing picture of what exactly the leaders of the Right think about the Arab public and its leaders.

The second factor was the split from the Joint Arab List, which may have caused more people to vote for Balad, a faction portrayed as militant and anti-Israeli. If Netanyahu becomes prime minister again, it will partly be thanks to the Arabs, especially those who broke away.

In any case, the politicians from the Zionist parties will continue to deal with the issue of Arab citizens in Israel. The Left, which is not satisfied with the percentage of votes in the Arab sector, and on the other hand, the Right, which was afraid of a high percentage of such votes. Unfortunately, the preoccupation will most likely not focus on integrating the Arab population, but will come from a place of intimidation and "stealing the Jewish state," as some right-wingers claim. This scenario, which has been going on for over a decade, could lead to a clash between the Arab public and the state and its institution, which has happened in the past.

To conclude, the election results are not a victory for one bloc or another. Even if a coalition is formed out of compulsion, it will be required to address all issues and serve all citizens – including the Arabs. As long as Jewish and Arab politicians continue to directly or indirectly promote the suppression and alienation of a fifth of the country's citizens, we will not reach a safe shore. However, as the political crisis in Israel continues, the Arabs will be the solution for anyone who will launch a coalition. Parliamentary work begins and ends with cooperation for all citizens.

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Zara drew harsh criticism this week after the owner of the clothing franchise in Israel hosted controversial right-wing lawmaker Itamar Ben Gvir in an election parlor.

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Many in the Arab sector called for a boycott of Zara and Schwebel's other businesses, with lawmakers choosing not to remain on the sidelines and filing a complaint with the company.

Unofficial data says that sales at Zara branches in Arab areas have plummeted, especially in Nazareth, although it is unclear whether the phenomenon will grow, and in my personal opinion, the boycott will pass soon, and the affair will be quickly forgotten.

The public has a short memory, and in any case, the focus will change the day after the election. Instead of responding to the matter, which is the result of the personal choice of the owner, not the company or its employees, by encouraging more Arab Israelis to vote on election day, some of the posts actually discouraged it and used the incident to support their calls for a political boycott.

We know that business people and politicians, Jews and Arabs alike, maintain ties that serve their interests without a direct or profound connection to ideology. A well-known example is politicians raising money for their parties from various business people¸ but by hosting Ben Gvir, Schwebel did identify with an ideology. As such, there is a real danger that Zara will be labeled in connection with it, especially by the company's competitors, rather than by the Arab public as a whole.

Having said that, one must know how to distinguish between the business activities of Zara, or any other business, and the personal decisions of those in charge. Because if Zara's revenue drops, there is no doubt it will decide to reduce its activities in Arab localities.

That will directly impact consumers, first and foremost affecting prices.

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The aftermath of the deadly Shuafat checkpoint attack, in which IDF soldier Stg. Noa Lazar was killed, saw a series of violent clashes between security forces and young Palestinians living in the refugee camp.

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Dozens shaved their heads to look like Uday Tamimi, the perpetrator, and even called each other by his name to confuse Israeli forces and complicate efforts to arrest him. Their efforts paid off until Wednesday when Tamimi was killed while trying to carry out another attack in the Ma'ale Adumim settlement outside Jerusalem.

The Palestinian population numbers around 35,000, who have lived without a leader since Faisal Husseini died in 2001. Clashes between security forces and Palestinian rioters happen regularly in Jerusalem, without intentional leadership. The only leaders are religious, and that at the neighborhood level – of heads of villages whose interests differ from the political leadership.

Nevertheless, despite the complicated situation and the perpetual clashes, the Palestinian Authority has silently agreed and given a hand to the change that has been taking place in recent years, the essence of which is financial investments by the Jerusalem municipality to bridge gaps between Arabs and Jews, and cooperation with the city officials in areas such as Israeli education, integration of institutions, and employment programs for women and youngsters aimed at integrating Palestinians into the Israeli workforce.

Although this is a result of Israel joining the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, which obliges it to invest in disadvantaged populations, it has additional meanings.

So why is it that despite major investments – and despite Jerusalem Mayor Moshe Leon paying special attention to the Palestinian population and refraining from statements aimed against the city's Arab residents – violent clashes continue to occur frequently, disrupting these education and integration projects?

The young Arab generation lives in conflict: they are under Israeli sovereignty and accept it, but boycott the municipality and the Knesset and do not vote, for example. Alongside the investment in budgets and resources, the state must enable the growth of young leaders for the Palestinian public in Jerusalem, but it takes two to tango.

The Palestinian population, which for the most part is not interested in being under the rule of the Palestinian Authority, must work to integrate and be part of the municipal and national political system in Israel, even though this may cause a change in politics in Israel in general, and among the Arab public in the country in particular.

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The fragmentation of the Joint Arab List ahead of the Nov. 1 election into three different slates could have historic repercussions: The list has self-imploded to the point that the next Knesset might have no representation of Israel's Arab citizens for the first time since its founding. 

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Polls show that all the Arab lists will be beaten badly, and even the two larger ones could fail to cross the minimum electoral threshold to win seats. Balad's decision to stay out of the Joint Arab List was motivated by its desire to undermine its leaders – Hadash chief MK Ayman Odeh and Ta'al leader Ahmad Tibi – ahead of their possible endorsement or de-facto support of Prime Minister Yair Lapid for a second term (after the election, the Israeli president will have to gauge how much support each candidate has in the parliament before he selects a new head of government). 

Balad apparently realized that they were gradually losing their electorate's support. The leadership changes, the limited resources, the radical agenda they had been pursuing, and the legal troubles some of its prominent figures have found themselves in – including three elected lawmakers – had all hurt the party. 

Since its founding in 1995, Balad has been the bitter enemy of Hadash, which had until then been considered the de facto representative of Arabs in the Knesset. Hadash's glee as the Joint Arab List disintegrated was great, as this was the first time in 28 years that the bourgeois rival that had become the home of intellectuals in the Arab society faces the real possibility of being wiped off the political map (at least at the national level. 

The Arab parties will have to find a way to avoid the biggest electoral defeat of Arab parties; they will have to run a campaign that would get Arab voters to the polls, regardless of which Arab party they end up voting for. 

If Arab turnout is 40% or lower as the polls project, Arab parties will have been dealt a potentially fatal blow due to the apathy among Arab voters. Assuming Israel has another election some six months later, this could create a golden opportunity to rethink their strategy and to create a new Arab party – or perhaps two – that would present a new agenda. This is not a far-fetched scenario.

The Arab sector is facing a severe crisis of leadership. The fact that none of the Zionist parties have Arabs in safe spots in the candidate lists should set off the alarm bells among Jewish voters, not just among Arabs. After all, a majority of Arabs do not want to take part in Israel's national politics but instead prefer to focus on where they have the most clout: local authorities. 

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The tragic shootings that have beset Arab-Israeli society in recent weeks  – which should not be called crimes but actual terrorist acts – include the horrible killings of two women and a well-known journalist. 

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These events once again prove that organized crime knows no limits. As long as the Israel Police drags its feet and the government doesn't demand action in no uncertain terms, and as long the Israeli Arabs continue to be complacent rather than rise up against this trend, the situation will only worsen. 

The slain journalist is thought to have faced extortion by creditors who wanted him to repay his brother's loan. He was killed despite having nothing to do with this outstanding debt. The mother and daughter who were killed in Lod were also the victims of a crime that was not supposed to target them: The assassins wanted to kill the father, but he had already fled overseas. 

Those who mistakenly thought that we had already reached peak brutality in this wave of criminal acts have been proved wrong once again. Those who kill a five-year-old boy or killed a young woman by planting a bomb in her car will only use more brutal tactics down the road. Too bad that the Israel Police, having lost its deterrence power, has only recently tried to show some resolve. This is too little and too late. 

The first step a new government will have to take in this regard (assuming a new one is formed right after the Nov. 1 election) is to end the distinction between criminal and terrorist acts. It should announce much harsher measures in the penal code regarding arms trafficking, from a knife to a gun. Why should an Arab who aims their weapon at a Jew be subject to life in prison but if he points it at a fellow Arab he would get released after the two families hold a "making peace" event because the courts would consider this actions to be just a "one-off" mistake? 

It's hard to admit that this is the case and to accept reality as it is, but had there been 75 Jews murdered in non-terrorist incidents since the start of 2022, heads would roll across the board in the Israel Police. 

A State Commission of Inquiry would then be formed and all the emergency powers would be invoked from the British mandate era, including through administrative detentions. Israeli Arabs are considered to be part of the fringe of Israeli society because they live in far-flung areas, and therefore Israeli Jews by and large could not care less about what unfolds there. 

The problems when it comes to crime among Israeli Arabs run deep, and involve a whole host of reasons, which include the lack of properly structured settings for Arabs after they graduate from school. It is also because they fell left out of the state's overall collective identity. 

This is where Israel faces a real strategic challenge that is of no less severity than the Iranian threat. Because having Arabs continue to disconnect from the state will ultimately undermine the very foundations of Israeli society and things will unravel rapidly. The solution to this problem may not be in the Knesset, but the Israeli parliament can wield its influence.

The name of the game is identity politics: When an Arab lawmaker who dares to partake in the government and shape Israeli life is cast as a terrorist-sympathizer, Arab voters feel estranged even more, and their reality is anything but changed for the better.

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For 15 years, the Gaza Strip has been under a blockade – at sea, in the air, and on land – and Israel has been trying to keep order.

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Egypt is also trying to keep things in line, and like Israel, isn't having much success. In the past three years, Egypt has seen three regimes – Hosni Mubarak, Mohammed Morsi, and Abdel Fattah el-Sissi – all of which tried to serve as mediators between Hamas, which rules Gaza, and Israel, which is trying to control from afar almost everything that happens there.

Anyone who wants to influence the Palestinian sphere, or wants to goad Israel and either can't or doesn't dare to enter into a direct military conflict with it, tries their luck via Gaza. That's what happened with Turkey and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who approved the Marmara flotilla and took a series of steps in support of Hamas by hosting the Hamas leadership. That's also what happened with Iran, which hosted some of Hamas' leaders and lent financial support to both Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Gaza is not merely a problem for Israel, it is a regional problem.

Despite Hamas' seizure of power, and the hostility between it and Israel, there is still security coordination, even if it takes place through a third party. This week, we got clear and open proof of that – the face that Hamas didn't join the PIJ. Along with making efforts to prevent any harm to its security, Israel must take direct and unmediated action to secure a truce that will last for decades – a peace agreement. Obviously, Hamas wants to get to that point even more than Israel does, as a truce will allow it to build up Gaza and move toward Judea and Samaria, expanding its popular control. For Israel, nothing having to do with Hamas and the PIJ is positive, anyway.

Even though Israel initiated the 2005 disengagement, Gaza still hasn't disengaged from Israel. Gaza has no independent industry or any base that allows its population to live independently.

Israel's main concern has to do with security, worrying that if Gaza has an independent economy, the money will go to terrorism. That is a valid concern. It's happened.

But the moment that a long-term truce is in place, countries that support Gaza will invest in hospitals, schools, infrastructure, and create jobs and develop the Gazan economy. Gaza will recover. And naturally, normalcy will weaken Hamas.

Both the residents of Gaza and the residents of Israel's south deserve to live in quiet, far from the threat of war. For that to happen, there needs to be a brave leadership in Israel and a pragmatic one in Gaza that can create a deal that will benefit both sides.

A truce will contribute to the democratization of Gaza and academic growth, making it easier to connect the children of Gaza to the world. Today, most of them never leave. And if what I've written here starts 10 years from now, it will be enough.

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