Free

Hamas has released several hostages taken on October 7 at the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, including a four-year-old American girl whose parents were killed by Hamas militants, during a four-day truce, which, as of this writing, may end today or may even be extended.  Many more people are calling for a cease-fire - myself included - as Israel wants it made plain that its operation against Hamas in Gaza is not over.  Far from it - it wants to eliminate Hamas (the group's name is an Arabic acronym for "Islamic Resistance Movement") as a militant organization and directly rule the Gaza Strip.  No one in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's cabinet, least of all Netanyahu himself,  wants a two-state solution despite the fact that President Biden wants it and despite the fact that it's the only recourse.  

As for the borders of a Palestinian state, they will likely be close to the borders of the current Occupied Territories of the West Bank and Gaza, so at least the Palestinians have the river and the sea.  Perhaps Gaza, a territory of 2.3 million people crammed into an area half again the size of Washington, D.C., can in peacetime serve as an important seaport for a Palestinian state and can also be transformed into a cozy seaside haven at the nexus point between Africa and Asia.  But it will be an exclave, and that's not that worst thing that could happen to a future nation of Palestine.  Other countries - Russia, Azerbaijan, Angola, the United States (Alaska?) have exclaves, and they manage.

Meanwhile, President Biden deserves some credit for his diplomatic skills in getting as many hostages released as he has, and some Democratic strategists believe that it will mitigate the friction between mainstream Democrats and young voters and Islamic voters disappointed so far with Biden's handling of the conflict and his tilt to Israel.  Trump wouldn't have gotten these people released.  Trump only has the support of people who want to see Palestinians bombed into the Stone Age.

So, a second Trump Presidency is still a possibility . . .. 😉