VATICAN CITY - While the Israeli Prime Minister orders military actions that appear aimed at asserting his own political power in the face of domestic and international pressure, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is catastrophic and instability in the region continues to escalate. In February, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu travelled to Washington to convince former US President Donald Trump of the need for a military strike against Iran. Instead, he was met with a surprising response: the launch of a new round of negotiations between the United States and Iran on the development of nuclear weapons.

In May, with negotiations over the release of the hostages kidnapped on 7 October deadlocked and Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich admitting that "releasing the hostages is not a priority", Hamas unconditionally released American hostage Edan Alexander after direct negotiations with the United States. In recent weeks, Trump has increasingly called for an end to the Gaza war. Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes continue, often targeting areas already devastated by months of conflict.

In mid-June, Trump visited the Gulf countries, where he met with the new Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. He congratulated him and wished him success in leading a nation he described as liberated from the dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad. In another move, Trump recently lifted long-standing sanctions imposed on Syria.

Netanyahu responded on Wednesday with airstrikes targeting both the Syrian army's general staff and the presidential palace in Damascus, the residence of President al-Sharaa. The official reason was to protect Druze communities that were reportedly attacked by pro-government militias. However, these clashes took place in Sweida, approximately 100 kilometres from Damascus, and al-Sharaa has already ordered the withdrawal of government forces from the area.

That relations between the United States and Israel are not as harmonious as Prime Minister Netanyahu has been trying to portray or hoped for in recent months is becoming increasingly clear. Likewise, it appears that Israel is opening new military fronts more because of its strategic position vis-à-vis Washington than because of pressing security concerns on the ground.

It also reflects Netanyahu's political calculations as he seeks to strengthen his position amid growing international isolation and ongoing corruption. In the crossfire of these calculated manoeuvres are the people of Gaza, who continue to die by the hundreds every day. The Middle East remains a dangerous powder keg. Those who pass through it with a lit match pose a danger not only to the region but to the entire world.

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