The main stumbling block to Trump's repeated efforts to end the conflict in Gaza, though, remains the fact that Palestinian leaders, and Qatar, have no genuine interest in negotiating a permanent peace deal with Israel.

Qatar, as well as other Gulf States, which reportedly are expected to pay for the reconstruction of Gaza, will doubtless demand a role in its future governance. Such a concession, even if Israel were to monitor security, would be a monumental recipe for disaster.

Qatar has a history of funding effectively all radical Islamic terrorist groups -- from ISIS to Al-Qaeda to Hamas to the Taliban --and appears solidly committed to furthering the policies of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Even if Hamas is not included in a future Gaza, there is always room theoretically for a clone of Hamas with a different name. As Egypt and Islamist groups continue smuggling weapons into the "new" Gaza, there will undoubtedly be endless friction with Israel, not to mention the Palestinians whom the current negotiators insist stay in place. With sufficient incentives, many countries might be glad to spare them years of living in rubble.

The best idea, and in the long run far less expensive militarily and diplomatically, would be if Trump would return to his original idea of Gaza as a kind of US-Israeli "Riviera" protectorate, preferably with a US military base. Then one would not even need any further Abraham Accords: a US military presence should be sufficient to deter aggression and keep peace -- as it has done so successfully in Qatar.

Not all Arab states might like this approach. It certainly would deprive them of the opportunity, should the winds change, of trying again to destroy Israel.

So even if, as Trump insists, Hamas is excluded from any future negotiations on the future of Gaza and the Palestinians, the likelihood of his administration having any positive talks with so-called "moderate" Palestinian leaders, such as Abbas -- or any prospects of a true, long-term peace if Arab countries are allowed to run Gaza -- sadly, the end to decades of hostility will continue to be non-existent.

Lake Urmia, once the 18th largest in the world, seems to have gone for good.

The position of scores of rivers is no better.

One immediate effect is a steady drop in food production.

Another cause of the current crisis, as mentioned by Pezeshkian, is population increase.