There are two lingering questions looming in the aftermath of the present agreement. The first question, obviously, is: “Will it hold?” The second question—on which the answer to the first largely depends—is whether Israel’s relations with the rest of the world, and especially its “special relationship” with the United States, are evolving in ways that might make a lasting peace possible at long last.

We can all be grateful that the slaughter in Gaza has been suspended, at least temporarily; that Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are being exchanged; and that relief aid can flow more freely to the suffering Gazan population. Not surprisingly, U.S. President Donald Trump is taking a victory lap and calling the cease-fire agreement the “historic dawn of a new Middle East.” He’s said similar things before, however, and so did some of his predecessors. I hope he’s right, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

We can all be grateful that the slaughter in Gaza has been suspended, at least temporarily; that Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are being exchanged; and that relief aid can flow more freely to the suffering Gazan population. Not surprisingly, U.S. President Donald Trump is taking a victory lap and calling the cease-fire agreement the “historic dawn of a new Middle East.” He’s said similar things before, however, and so did some of his predecessors. I hope he’s right, but I wouldn’t bet on it.

There are two lingering questions looming in the aftermath of the present agreement. The first question, obviously, is: “Will it hold?” The second question—on which the answer to the first largely depends—is whether Israel’s relations with the rest of the world, and especially its “special relationship” with the United States, are evolving in ways that might make a lasting peace possible at long last.

Regarding the first quest