Israeli commentators said the Egyptian mediation amounted to indirect negotiations between the Israeli government and Hamas, a group with which the United States refuses to have dealings.
The Palestinian resistance organisation, which controls inside Gaza Strip (although it is still under Israeli occupation), was offering Israel a long-term truce which could make it easier for the rival Palestinian group Fatah to reach an agreement with Israel -- a goal which the United States says it is promoting.
In his Sharm el-Sheikh speech, Bush also attacked the Lebanese group Hezbollah, calling it "terrorists funded by Iran" and "the enemy of a free Lebanon"
Three days later in the Gulf state of Qatar, Hezbollah and other Lebanese groups reached an agreement ending the political crisis that had paralysed Lebanon for months.

But five years after Bush launched his campaign for political change in the Middle East, pro-US Arab leaders have learned that the price for ignoring him on human rights is low.

"We've heard these speeches before," said an Egyptian official who asked not to be named.
In Cairo three years ago US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said
the time had come for the rule of law to replace emergency decrees.
On the other hand, groups that enjoy wide public support
(Hezbollah) or have been democratically elected (Hamas) remained out of
US favour.

It is part of a wider picture of Washington's declining clout

In addition to the clout you get with your size there is equally the clout you get from getting it right. When you get it wrong continuously then you have zero clout.

Once you use military clout then there's no going back to non military option. No matter how big the bully, once he uses physical force then effect on all others is diminished, certainly when a light weight isn't taken out.

I hope now that the argument as to Clinton threats being more effective than Bush's race to violence, is now a clear win for Clinton method.