Amos Hochstein is one of the most influential members of Joe Biden’s foreign policy team. He has been shuttling between Tel Aviv, Beirut, and Washington, DC, for the past year, as a top diplomatic envoy for the president. He is one of the two White House officials, according to Politico, who “privately told Israel that the US would support its decision to ramp up military pressure against Hezbollah.”

He is also a former member of the Israeli military.

“I think [Hochstein’s appointment] tells you all you need to know about US ‘mediation’ in the Middle East,” said Karim Makdisi, an international politics professor at the American University of Beirut.

“From ‘Israel’s lawyer’ in Oslo to a literal IDF soldier today, it’s consistent and tells you clearly that Israel is the only real concern for US policy, and then it’s a question of using the carrot (Hochstein) or stick.”