A U.S. delegation led by Vice President J.D. Vance arrived in Israel to help maintain the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and prepare for the next phase of the peace process. Vance emphasized that bringing the war to a complete end will be difficult, but that is now the main goal—to disarm Hamas while simultaneously rebuilding Gaza. Against the backdrop of Washington’s efforts, Donald Trump, who credits himself as a peacemaker, continues to insist that he will keep the United States out of “forever wars.”
Vice President Vance said on Wednesday that the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is holding, though bringing the war fully to an end will not be easy.
“We have a very tough task ahead of us—to disarm Hamas while rebuilding Gaza,” Vance said after meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
Vance is leading the U.S. delegation sent to Israel to oversee compliance with the ceasefire and work toward a second, more challenging phase of the agreement.
In Israel, Netanyahu is commonly known as “Bibi,” and local media have dubbed the American delegation the “Bibisitters.”
Alongside Vance, the delegation includes Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and Admiral Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to join them later in the week.
Netanyahu called his meeting with Vance “an opportunity to make decisions in a close and trusting partnership.”
The American delegation is holding broad consultations with the Israeli side, but no meetings with Hamas representatives are planned—the United States designates the group as a terrorist organization, making direct contact prohibited.
However, Witkoff and Kushner said they met with Hamas leaders in Egypt to finalize the details of the ceasefire agreement that took effect on October 10.
Israel Strikes Targets in Gaza, Citing a Ceasefire Violation
Hamas Accuses Tel Aviv of Provocation as Far-Right Ministers Call for Resuming the War
Peace in Gaza Begins with Chaos
The U.S. Seeks to Shape a Postwar Order as Hamas Holds Power and Risks Derailing the Deal
Under the terms of the deal, interim governance of Gaza is to be handed over to fifteen nonpartisan technocrats, though the timeline for the transfer of power remains undefined.
Responding to a question about the power vacuum in Gaza, Vance said that the immediate priorities are food, medicine, and security.
“If we reach the point where we’re debating what Gaza’s long-term governing system should look like, that will mean we’ve already made significant progress. But I’m not going to discuss that prematurely,” he said.
Vance made his remarks in southern Israel, about ten miles from the Gaza border, where he visited a civil-military coordination center established in recent days by 200 U.S. troops.
The center will host representatives from the United States, other countries, and humanitarian organizations operating in Gaza. Its goal is to ensure coordination among all parties involved.
The ceasefire plan stipulates that Hamas must “lay down its arms,” though the group itself has made no public commitment to do so. Vance stressed that disarmament must occur but declined to specify the mechanism.
Israeli forces, which still control roughly half of Gaza’s territory, are required to withdraw as the situation stabilizes.
International stabilization forces are expected to replace them, though it remains unclear which countries will contribute troops, when they will arrive, and what their mandate will be. Israel has already indicated that it reserves the right to approve the participation of specific countries in the mission.
Trump Says the U.S. Must Avoid Prolonged Conflicts and Focus on Diplomacy
Meanwhile, Trump continues to insist that he will not allow the United States to be drawn into “forever wars.”
At the same time, he sees himself as a skilled negotiator capable of ending military conflicts. He is widely credited with playing a key role in brokering the Gaza ceasefire after two years of intense fighting.
The Trump administration emphasizes that the 200 U.S. troops stationed in Israel will operate solely within the coordination center and will not enter Gaza.
Nevertheless, since the presidency of Harry Truman, every U.S. president has sought to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict—and none has yet achieved lasting peace.