US urges to disarm Hamas, restore Gaza
During the second day of his visit to Israel, Vance met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss advancing the plan aimed at halting hostilities, recovering hostages, and launching reconstruction efforts in Gaza. "We have a very, very tough task ahead of us, which is to disarm Hamas but rebuild Gaza, to make life better for the people of Gaza, but also to ensure that Hamas is no longer a threat to our friends in Israel," Vance said.
The vice president began his three-day trip on Tuesday by inaugurating the Civil-Military Coordination Centre (CMCC) in southwest Israel, which will serve as a joint operational hub for U.S., allied, and Israeli forces to monitor the truce and coordinate humanitarian aid deliveries. "A lot of our Israeli friends working together with a lot of Americans to actually mediate this entire ceasefire process, to get some of the critical infrastructure off the ground," Vance added following his discussions with Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
He highlighted the creation of an “international security force” as a central component of President Donald Trump’s 20-point Gaza peace plan, which envisions maintaining order as Israel gradually withdraws its troops. While several U.S. allies are reportedly weighing participation, Washington has made it clear that no American soldiers will enter Gaza; instead, they will operate from the CMCC in Kiryat Gat, southern Israel.
Reports suggesting that Turkey—a vocal critic of Israel—might contribute troops to the mission have caused unease among Israeli officials. Netanyahu, responding to questions on the matter, said decisions regarding the force’s composition would be made jointly with Washington but added pointedly, “I have very strong opinions about that. You want to guess what they are?”
Despite a flare-up of violence on Sunday, when two Israeli soldiers were killed and the military retaliated with airstrikes that reportedly left dozens of Palestinians dead, Vance expressed “great optimism” about the ceasefire’s durability and the broader peace process.
Netanyahu and his wife Sara hosted Vance and Second Lady Usha Vance for breakfast before holding a working meeting and a televised press conference. Facing criticism from domestic opponents for agreeing to the U.S.-supported truce before Hamas was fully dismantled and before all hostages’ remains were recovered, Netanyahu defended his decision.
"We’ve been able to do two things. Put the knife up to Hamas’s throat. That was the military effort guided by Israel," he said, expressing gratitude to Trump for his diplomatic leadership in improving Israel’s regional ties. "And the other effort was to isolate Hamas and the Arab and Muslim world, which I think the president did brilliantly with his team. So those two things produced the hostages," Netanyahu added.
Vance described the ceasefire plan as “a critical piece in unlocking the Abraham Accords” — the Trump-era initiative that sought to normalize relations between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
The truce, however, remains “very, very fragile” amid ongoing tensions. Following the deadly Israeli strikes, the Hamas-run health ministry reported 45 Palestinian casualties, while Hamas denied involvement in the earlier attack that killed the Israeli soldiers. Despite the unrest, Hamas has continued returning the remains of hostages as stipulated in the ceasefire agreement.
In Gaza City’s Al Rimal neighborhood, displaced resident Imran Skeik, 34, described a cautious sense of relief. “The situation is much better — the war has stopped, and there are no sounds of bombs and shelling like before,” he said. “We hope the ceasefire continues and that Israel and Hamas both stick to it. We’ve started to get some rest, but there are still many problems. Will we have to stay in tents — another kind of suffering?”
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