For the past two years, Democratic lawmakers, left-wing commentators, and pro-Hamas activists have consistently called for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas amid the ongoing conflict sparked by the October 7, 2023, attacks. However, now that President Donald Trump has brokered a historic peace deal designed to halt the hostilities, many of these same voices have turned critical, questioning the agreement’s effectiveness and raising doubts about Israel’s commitment to honor it, the Washington Free Beacon reports.
Former MSNBC personality Mehdi Hasan wrote in one of several posts on X, “I love that we live in a world where we’re all supposed to now praise Trump for his peace-making and ignore the fact that at least 20,000 Palestinians have been killed on his watch, with bombs & bullets – & rhetorical support! – that he supplied to Israel,” adding, “That’s all erased now.”
Several prominent left-wing figures and activists who previously advocated for a ceasefire have voiced concerns about the deal’s durability. Former Senator Bernie Sanders advisor Matt Duss, anti-Zionist writer Peter Beinart, and others have questioned whether Israel will adhere to the ceasefire terms or resume conflict once phase one concludes. Francesca Albanese, a U.N. official, criticized requirements that Hamas disarm and end support for terrorism, suggesting instead that Israel itself should undergo a process of “deradicalization” and questioned the fairness of the deal in terms of Palestinian security.
Others, like Quincy Institute’s Trita Parsi, warned that reducing the deal to just a ceasefire without addressing the broader war would be disastrous. Meanwhile, some activists expressed frustration over Israel’s refusal to release Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti, who advocates non-violence, interpreting it as an indication that Israel prefers Hamas to remain in power rather than fostering Palestinian unity.
According to the Free Beacon, Ryan Grim, a Drop Site News reporter known for his anti-Israel stance and for falsely alleging in June that Israel carried out a massacre at an aid site, claimed that the peace deal is no different from previous negotiations.
“A version of this deal has been available every day since November 2023, when many more people were alive,” Grim wrote on X.
Grim also argued that Israel’s refusal to include the release of convicted terrorist Marwan Barghouti in the deal shows it has no genuine interest in removing Hamas from power. “Refusing to release Marwan Barghouti, who embraces non-violence and a two-state solution, is blindingly clear evidence that the Israeli government, despite their protestations, genuinely prefers Hamas in power if there must be Palestinians at all,” he wrote. “If you are not pushing for Barghouti’s release, you do not want an end to the conflict, you want permanent war and occupation.”
The British newspaper The Guardian acknowledged the war-ending potential of the deal but criticized it for only superficially addressing Palestinian self-determination and statehood. On Capitol Hill, Representative Ilhan Omar cautiously supported the ceasefire but called for accountability over alleged Israeli war crimes, while other left-wing lawmakers have largely refrained from commenting.
In the end, many of these voices appear less interested in ending the bloodshed than in protecting their ideological talking points, turning what should be a milestone agreement into yet another opportunity to vilify Israel and diminish the Trump administration’s historic achievement.