Standing next to Donald Trump on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged that he had accepted the plan put forward by the United States president to end Israel’s war on Gaza.

But a few hours later – and this time speaking in Hebrew rather than English – Netanyahu couched that agreement, telling his domestic audience that he definitely had not agreed to a Palestinian state and the Israeli military would remain in most of Gaza.

On paper, Trump’s 20-point plan fulfils many of Israel’s stated war aims: the return of Israeli captives, the dismantling of Hamas as a military and political force, and the creation of a temporary international administration in Gaza unlikely to threaten Israel.

But agreeing to any deal has political and personal costs for Netanyahu, who has ke

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