Analysis: What Rahm Emanuel 2.0 means for the Middle East?
CHICAGO: In Middle East politics, peace is made not between friends but between enemies, suggesting the harshest foes have a better chance to achieve peace than those who claim to be friends.
That pattern has shaped some of the region’s most consequential breakthroughs, from the 1979 Egypt-Israel peace treaty to the 1993 Oslo accords and Jordan’s 1994 peace agreement with Israel.
Each was incomplete, each left the core Palestinian question unresolved, but they all reflected the same hard truth: progress has usually come only when adversaries were willing to sit down across the table.
Now Rahm Emanuel — a seasoned political operator, former White House chief of staff and Chicago mayor, and one of Israel’s most outspoken American allies — is emerging as a voice arguing that the cycle of hostility can be interrupted.
Long regarded as a fierce critic of Palestinian leadership, Emanuel is reportedly weighing a presidential run built in part on promises to restore American leverage in the region and reengage both sides in a serious peace process.
Buoyed by a career of political successes, Emanuel is contemplating a run for the presidency in 2028 on the Democratic Party ticket, positioning himself as a figure who can help bring Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.
